


A SANSational Experiment

by Britkiir



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: And now so is UnderswapSans, F/M, Gastersans is a pervy perv, Reader Is Not Frisk, Reader-Insert, Reverse Harem, Sin trash, You're going down with me, but good crack, i'm a sinner, reader is female, this is total crack
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-27
Updated: 2017-12-16
Packaged: 2018-06-04 22:22:47
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 19
Words: 75,174
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6677650
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Britkiir/pseuds/Britkiir
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>All you wanted to do was science.</p><p>Where did all these Sans come from?!</p><p> </p><p>Sin chapters will be marked with an asterisk, and I will inform if it will be important to the storyline or not in the opening notes.<br/> ヾ(⌐■_■)ノ♪ Enjoy!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. In Which You Gain Some New Friends

**Author's Note:**

> Haha! Lol, I'm so sorry about this, but it's a story I came up with when I was under the influence of my tooth-aching induced madness. I hope you guys like it!

You tapped your pen against your bottom lip as your eyes gazed at the crossword in your hands. It was quiet in the lab today; the silence only being broken by the tiny radio in the corner playing oldies. You were leaning back in your chair, your bare feet placed up on the table in front of you.

 

“Let’s see…,” you mumbled, “A symbol used for potential temperature in meteorology…”

 

“theta.”

 

You jolted forward, only now very aware that you weren’t alone in the lab. “Jesus Christ!” You placed a frazzled hand over your chest, feeling your heart beating way faster than it should.

 

The skeleton standing behind you just grinned wider, “the name’s sans.” He sauntered lazily over to his chair next to you, plopping down a large brown bag dotted with grease stains.

 

“Sans, I really wish you wouldn’t do that,” you chided, pushing your glasses back up the bridge of your nose, “You’re gonna kill me one day.”

 

The short skeleton only snorted as he fished out his lunch, shoving the bag towards you, “promise, that’s not my intention.”

 

You playfully cut your eyes at him as you set the crossword on the table, opting instead for the bag labelled ‘Grillby’s’. It had become customary that you and Sans take turns buying lunch, today being Sans’ day. Of course, he got Grillby’s.

 

Not that you minded, though. You actually enjoyed the monster food. From what Sans had told you, it was actually infused with the tiniest bit of magic, and whenever you ate it you could feel it tingle your taste buds. You flushed as you remembered the first time you had eaten from Grillby’s and how the sounds that came from you were borderline lewd.

 

You gently unwrapped the fresh burger Sans had gotten you, dumping out the crisp fries on the paper. “Oh, hey, did you give my report to Dr. Gaster? He asked me about it this morning. Says he never got it,” you popped a fry in your mouth, chewing as you awaited his answer.

 

“nah, forgot.” He was leaned back in his own chair, his posture just the epitome of lazy.

 

You deadpanned, “Sans!”

 

“that’s my name.”

 

You let out a strained sigh, “Sans, that report was due yesterday!” It was your fault, you guessed, for relying on him with such a simple task. “Where is it? I’ll just have to run it to him today, and hope he isn’t too mad…”

 

Sans just gave you a shrug before taking a swig of ketchup, and you knew he was watching your reaction out of the corner of his eye.

 

“You… You lost my report, didn’t you?”

 

No answer, just a grin.

 

That grin just leads you to ask yourself one question:

 

How had you gotten yourself into this?

 

_You paced around your tiny apartment, anxiety and nervousness making you a jittery mess. You were currently giving yourself a mini pep talk._

_“It’s fine, it’s fine, you’ll be fine. It’s just a phone call. Just one phone call, (Name). It’s just a sequence of numbers on a phone. That’s it,” you let out a large sigh, snatching up the newspaper that was currently giving you said anxiety, “Just type the numbers in and hit the big green button.”_

_And you just stared at the paper, your phone in a death grip in your left hand._

**_LAB ASSISTANT NEEDED: ALL BACKGROUNDS ACCEPTED_ **

**_PLEASE CALL (XXX) XXX-XXXX FOR MORE INFORMATION_ **

****

_Not much though was given to the ad, but it had caught your eye. And you, being a sad, broke college graduate, needed to start somewhere. Your thumb hovered over the numbers, but you couldn’t move it to type them in._

_Distantly you could feel your cat brush himself up against your leg and it brought you down from your nervous cloud. He looked up at you, green eyes staring into yours before giving you a long, “Mrowww.”_

_“Felix, I,” you gulped, “I can’t do it.”_

_“Mreow.”_

_“It’s just… What if I’m not what they need?!”_

_The small orange cat just stared at you._

_“You… You’re right. I won’t know until I try!”_

_With some kind of energy, you typed in the number and hit ‘CALL’._

_You froze. What were you supposed to say?! What if you choked up on the phone, had a panic attack, and died before they could even get your name?!_

_Well, at least Felix could feed off your body after you died._

_The phone was answered after the second ring._

_“hello?”_

_You opened your mouth, but nothing came out. Not your name, not a greeting._

_Just a strange squeak._

_The person on the other end of the line cleared their throat, “uh, hello?”_

_Finally deciding to be a normal human being again, you found your voice, “Um, yes. I’m calling about your, uh, ad? In the paper?”_

_Some shuffling was heard over the receiver before the voice spoke again. It was deep and a little monotonous, but sounded friendly enough. “oh, right! yeah, i actually wasn’t expecting anyone to actually call,” he chuckled, “but, yeah. great! uh, so, would you wanna come in for an interview?”_

_You smiled. He sounded almost as nervous as you were! That let you feel a little relieved. “Yes! Yeah, that would be great!” You hoped your eagerness didn’t show through too much, but the smile on your face definitely proved how happy you were._

_“awesome! how about,” more shuffling was heard, and a small string of curses from him caused you to giggle a little, “ah, how about the day after tomorrow? three sound good to you?”_

_“That sounds perfect! Thank you so much!”_

_He read off an address, followed by an office number. After a few more words were shared, you felt the end of the conversation coming._

_“well, i’ll be looking forward to meeting you.”_

_“Wait!” You covered your mouth, realizing you must have been really loud. “Wait, I, uh, I don’t even know your name. Just so I know who to ask for, you know?”_

_He chuckled, and it caused a slight heat to cover your face. “it’s sans. sans the-,” he stopped himself, “well, you’ll see.”_

_When you showed up two days later, you weren’t expecting your interviewer to be… well, a monster._

_A skeleton monster._

_You just stared at him, standing awkwardly outside his office door. “Uh… Are you… Sans?”_

_He held his arms out to his side, “sans the skeleton, at your service.”_

_You were hired right away, much to your surprise. You cast it off to the fact that Sans had said he wasn’t expecting anyone to really call, anyway._

_You were so excited! Finally! Working in an actual lab, with an actual scientist (even though he was a monster, but you felt like that just added to the excitement). Monsters had been on the surface for almost two years now, so it wasn’t uncommon to see and interact with them._

_You could finally get your professional career on the road._

“take a picture, pal, it’ll last longer.”

 

You were brought back to your senses when an airborne fry had thumped you in the forehead. You reached up to wipe away the offending salt that decided to stick to your skin. “Throwing food is rude, Sans.”

 

He twirled around in his chair, his lab coat fluttering lazily with the movements, “it’s also rude to stare, kid.” He stopped, fake hurt pulled onto his skeletal face, “i’m very fragile, you know.”

 

You snorted, “Oh, yeah. Real **sans** itive.”

 

“hey, that was pretty good,” he chuckled, popping a fry into his open mouth.

 

Your eyes caught sight of the dull-looking fangs that protruded down from his teeth and you couldn’t help but stare. You couldn’t help it! He usually kept his mouth closed, somehow speaking through his teeth even though it didn’t sound muffled when he did so. Sans was just such an interesting person.

 

You reached over to grab the crossword you were working on, but he snatched it up from the table before you could. He winked at you, knowing well that he had won.

 

“I hate you.”

 

“nah, you don’t.”

 

You huffed before sitting back into your chair, “Whatever helps you sleep at night.”

 

Over the past year you’d been working with Sans, you had become quite close friends. Close enough even that you got to meet his friends and family, the most notable being his brother Papyrus. You’d met him on a day where you came in later than you were supposed to. You’d woken up late and rushed in, hair astray and glasses sat crooked on your nose.

 

“mornin’, sunshine,” Sans had greeted you.

 

You only grumbled a response, the grumble turning into a choked scream as you’re lifted off of the ground. “BROTHER, IS THIS THE HUMAN YOU HAVE BEEN TELLING ME ABOUT?!”

 

In your panic you flailed your arms wildly, “What?! What is going on?!”

 

Sans only chuckled, “yeah, that’s them, paps.”

 

You twisted your head to look at who this ‘Paps’ was, and why you were so far off the ground. You were met with another skeleton, this one smiling with his arms wrapped around your midsection.

 

You chuckled at the memory, earning you an odd glance from Sans. You made a face at him before taking a bite from your burger, the slight tingling from the magic causing you to let out a happy sigh. “I love monster food sooooo much~”

 

Sans snorted, “do you need a moment?”

 

“You jealous that this burger is getting more action than you ever will?” you shot back.

 

The skeleton just rolled his eyes, “sure.”

 

A few more moments rolled by before you spoke up again, “Have you checked on TIMM’s readings today?”

 

“yeah, checked ‘em this morning,” he leaned forward, leaning his mandible into his hand, “nothing really special. some fluctuations in the energy meter, but other than that it’s about the same.”

 

You nodded, a little disheartened. TIMM was a machine that was a rebuild of another one that Sans had in the Underground. The name was an acronym, which stood for Time and Interdimensional Manifestation Moderator. So, rather than having to recite the name over and over in conversation, you offered the name TIMM, which Sans accepted with great pleasure. You even went as far as drawing a goofy little face on it.

 

The machine was a little taller than you, and actually looked like a time machine out of one of those sci-fi movies, with tubes and wires and lights all over. You’d learned shortly after accepting the job that Sans had a degree in Quantum Physics, and was exploring the possibility of the Multiverse Theory. At first you had thought he was joking with you, but after he had shown you all the evidence and the probabilities of alternate universes, you were right on board.

 

Sans was a smart cookie; you gave him that. And you… well, you learned something new every day.

 

The rest of the day trudged on, with you doing your report (again, adding today’s data), and Sans tinkering with some of the levels on TIMM.

 

Luckily, with this job, you were relocated to a housing that was connected to the labs (which was a large campus all on its own). So, because of that, it didn’t take long for you to get home. The facility was a lot like a college campus, sometimes even housing college interns during summer programs.

 

“Well, I’m headed home. See ya in the morning.” You packed your things into your small satchel, fixing your glasses back up onto your face.

 

“k. have a good evening.” Sans didn’t even look up from the data he was reading, simply waving you off.

 

You made a face and flicked him on the back of the skull. He started, turning and giving you a look over his own glasses he had taped to his head. You offered him a smile, “Don’t work too hard, okay? Go home and get some sleep, too.”

 

He simply waved you off again, pretending he didn’t like the fact that you were concerned about him, “yeah, yeah, whatever.”

 

“Sans.”

 

“alright. i will, now will ya leave me alone?”

 

You smiled and rolled your eyes, “Night, Sans.”

 

He only grumbled in response as you left.

 

 

 

It had taken you maybe fifteen minutes to land yourself in bed, freshly showered and ready to sleep. You folded up your glasses and set them on your bedside table, checking your phone before rolling over onto your back.

 

Felix jumped up onto your bed, purring loudly as he made a nice pillow out of your stomach. You hummed softly as you reached down and scratched behind his ears.

 

It didn’t take long for you to lose yourself into your dreams, carried away by the soft rain that had begun to fall outside your window.

 

 

 

A loud crash of thunder pulled you out of your sleep, causing Felix to scatter off the bed. You sat upright, your face heavy with sleep. You groaned, knowing it would be hard for you to fall back into your sweet surrender. Curse you and your sleeping problems.

 

Looking over, your blurry eyesight caught the little light that blinked on your phone indicating you had a message.

 

You shoved your glasses onto your face and pressed the button to light up your phone, noting that you did have several messages from Sans. They were all relatively new, the last one coming in just under a minute ago.

 

You didn’t have time to even look at them though as your phone displayed you were receiving a call from said skeleton. You sighed and answered, your voice scratchy from sleep. “Hello?”

 

“hey, kid, what are you doing right now?”

 

“Uh, well, I _was_ sleeping. What’s up?”

 

He was silent for a moment.

 

“Sans?”

 

“uh, yeah, sleeping. well, i’m still at the lab and-”

 

“Wait, what? Sans, why?! It’s almost one in the morning!”

 

“yeah, yeah, i know. but listen, before i was gonna head out, i checked TIMM’s readings one more time.”

 

You pushed down your slight annoyance, “Okay?”

 

“and, i think it might just be a reaction to the lightning and thunder from the storm, but the data is off the charts crazy!”

 

“Well… What do you mean?”

 

“like, the energy is pulling through matter and magic that shouldn’t even exist in this dimension!” You could practically feel his excitement through the phone. “i know it’s super late and all, but i could really use you here. i want you here to see this!”

 

You jumped up out of bed, haphazardly throwing on a pair of jeans and a hoodie over your sleep shirt, “Yeah! Definitely! I’ll be there in five minutes.”

 

“see you soon!”

 

After slipping on some socks and shoes, you grabbed your keys and rushed out the door. You made it across campus in less than five minutes, which was surprising considering the rain pounded down on you relentlessly.

 

You slid your key card to your designated lab, and your squeaky shoes echoed throughout the empty hallways. The building moved by in a blur of gray and green, and soon you were entering the code to enter yours and Sans’ workplace.

 

The loud whirring sound reached your ears long before you opened the door to the lab, and in moments a frazzled and excited Sans was at your side.

 

“you’re here! great! good!”

 

“Sans, how much coffee have you had today?”

 

“about thirteen cups, but that ain’t important! look!”

 

He pulled you over to TIMM, pointing to the screen that displayed the levels of energy it was reading. Your eyes widened as the numbers bounced all over the screen, readings going from high to low in miliseconds. “Woah…”

 

Sans usual lazy demeanor was replaced with sheer, unadulterated excitement, “do you know what this could mean?!” You didn’t have a chance to answer as Sans grabbed your hands into his, “it means that these readings, this unnatural energy and magic that TIMM is picking up can ONLY come from another dimension- another UNIVERSE, even!”

 

He spun you around, his laughter becoming contagious. You liked seeing him so happy, so enamored with the thought that those simple numbers could mean something amazing. “This is wonderful, Sans!”

 

Moments later, however, the entire ground shook frighteningly. Thunder rolled outside, and something struck the building so hard it caused the two of you to crash down onto the ground. Glass objects fell and shattered to the floor, windows cracked, and the lights went out.

 

Everything went eerily quiet.

 

You shuffled around on the floor, reaching up and groping the desk nearest to you, “Uh, Sans?”

 

A muffled response was heard only a few feet away from you. You heard him shuffle around, too.

 

The room lit up in a strange blue that emanated from TIMM. The light bounced off the objects around you, and you straightened your glasses in an effort to find your skeletal companion. An unnatural whirring sound came from TIMM, and your eyes shot to it as sparks began to mysteriously fly from the metal.

 

Sans, who was struggling to stand on his own, had reached out to find something to grab onto. Your heart lurched, however, when he subconsciously reached for the machine.

 

“Sans, DON’T!”

 

Just as his phalanges made contact with the device, a loud sound like thunder ripped through the air and the blue light that came from TIMM surrounded the skeleton. He let out a pained, almost animalistic cry as he was somewhat electrocuted, the intensity throwing him back against a desk.

 

You made a move to rush to him, but the energy that spurted forward sent you down as well, your head making contact with the corner of a table in a rather painful manner. Everything went black as you crumpled on the cold tile.

 

 

“H-HUMAN?”

 

You twitched a little, the feeling of little fingers poking your cheek making you cringe.

 

“HUMAN, IF YOU ARE ALIVE, PLEASE, UH, DON’T GO NOT ALIVE?”

 

Who was talking to you?

 

“wake up!”

 

Who was _yelling_ at you?!

 

“OH MYOH HOH HOH! WHAT IF THE HUMAN IS DEAD?!”

 

“shut up! didn’t you see them move?”

 

You slowly cracked your eyes open, the fluorescent lights of the lab attacking your corneas. A pained moan escaped your lips and you reached up to cradle your aching skull.

 

A slightly high-pitched gasp caused you to look up, “OH! THE HUMAN IS AWAKE! THANKS TO THE MAGNIFICENT SANS, NO DOUBT!”

 

Wait.

 

What?

 

You sat up, slowly. Your eyes widened as you looked around.

 

Sans.

 

So many Sans.

 

You let out a screech and flung yourself back into the desk, your legs pulled up to your chest. “What- How- Why?!”

 

Standing before you were… copies? Clones?

 

Clones of Sans?

 

But they weren’t… your Sans.

 

One was gazing at you with wonder, large blue stars in his eye sockets. He had a blue bandanna wrapped around his neck with matching blue gloves and boots and a large, childlike smile on his face. A pretty blue blush was settled over his cheekbones as he moved closer to you. “OH, HUMAN! I WAS SO WORRIED YOU HAD FALLEN DOWN AND WOULDN’T GET BACK UP!”

 

Your eyes flitted from him to another Sans. He stood there with somewhat of a grimace on his face, and you couldn’t help but notice his teeth were sharp, and one was golden, glinting in the light. He wore a black hoodie with spiked fur around the hood, a red shirt underneath with black shorts and red sneakers. His eyes were red, and the way they glared into your soul made you audibly gulp. “you gotta lotta explaining to do, human.”

 

“LEAVE THE HUMAN ALONE! THEY JUST CAME TO, AND NO DOUBT DO NOT WANT TO BE ANTAGONIZED BY YOU!” Bless the little blueberry.

 

A pained groan came from your far left and you gasped, “Sans!”

 

You did an odd scuttle/crawl over to the skeleton collapsed on the floor. He was face down, his head buried into his arms.

 

“Sans, Sans can you hear me?” You spoke in a soft tone, but your hands were shaky as you touched his shoulder, “Sans, c’mon.”

 

He groaned, slipping his hands under him and pushing himself up. “what… what happened?”

 

You opened your mouth to speak, but you really couldn’t find anything to say. What HAD happened?

 

Someone cleared their voice from somewhere above you, and your head snapped up. How had you not noticed him before.

 

There was ANOTHER Sans, just as different as the other two.

 

He was perched on the desk, leaning back leisurely onto his elbows. This Sans was… Odd. He was physically taller than the other three, and two cracks branched out from each eye socket, one leading up and over his skull and the other branching down into his grin. He was dressed in a leather jacket, the sleeves rolled up above his elbows. It was left unzipped, revealing there was nothing underneath, exposing his ribcage. He wore a pair of gray jeans with a black leather belt. The belt seemed to do no good, really, as his hipbones were clearly visible.

 

He offered you a sultry smile as you stared, eyes wide and cheeks flushed.

 

“take a picture, cutie. lasts longer.”

 

You’d been told that once today, by Sans no less, but this time you couldn’t help the odd warmth it caused.

 

Oh, boy.


	2. In Which You're Feeling Bonely

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Following the incident, you have some unexpected house-guests.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, my fellow humans! I apologize for the wait! On this and on All I Wanted, but I've been going through some carazy shiz with my tooth and mouth area. And school. I promise I will do better! Here, take my love in the form of this chapter!

Your Sans hadn’t moved in what seemed like hours, when in reality it hadn’t even been twenty minutes. His eyelights were dimmed, and he had a far off look on his face.

 

You rushed to move him from the floor and plopped him onto a plush office chair, but he didn’t even seem to notice the change. You said his name softly, running your hand up and down his arm in what you hoped was a comforting manner. “Hey, you okay?”

 

He just stared forward, eyes unfocused and hands limp in his lap.

 

You couldn’t blame him, not really anyway. You were impressed he was even still conscious. You knew for a fact that you wouldn’t be if there were suddenly three clones of you standing in the same room.

 

A tap on your shoulder pulled you out of your one-sided staring contest with the skeleton. “UM, HUMAN?”

 

You looked up to the Sans with the blue bandanna, “Uh, yes?”

 

He teetered back and forth on his feet, shyly avoiding your gaze. “WHERE… UH, WHERE ARE WE?” He cast a nervous glance around the messy lab, his gloved hands wringing themselves together.

 

Giving a reassuring pat to Sans’ arm, you stood, fidgeting slightly with your glasses. “Well, ah… Sans… You’re currently in a laboratory where… Sans,” you gestured to the semi-responsive monster in the chair, “and I work.” Might as well take this one step at a time.

 

The little skeleton shuffled a little closer to you, confusion laced across his face as he reached out and gripped onto your hoodie sleeve, “BUT… HOW DID WE GET HERE?”

 

Your heart swelled a little at the action. He was… quite adorable, if you were going to be honest. Aside from him being Sans, he reminded you of someone else. You pursed your lips and tried to make a connection, inadvertently staring at the little skelley.

 

Sans, feeling a little uncomfortable that you didn’t answer his question, gave your sleeve a gentle tug. “HUMAN?”

 

Shaking yourself out of your thoughts, you gave him an uneasy and slightly apologetic smile. “Ah, sorry Sans. But, honestly, I really don’t know how you got here.”

 

“i think i do,” the original Sans mumbled, pushing himself off of the chair. It rolled away slightly from the action, bumping into the desk behind it. Sans shuffled over to TIMM, which was now completely quiet. A few sparks flew from it, but the lights and meters and readings were all gone. “shit, must’ve shorted out from the spike in energy…”

 

You moved to stand next to him, the little Sans following your movements. His hand was still gripping tightly to your sleeve, and when you looked down at him, he gave you a look that seemed as if he was asking if it was okay to do so. Feeling your cheeks warm a little, you instead offered your hand. He took it graciously, a child-like smile stretched over his face. ‘Aw, he’s so sweet…’

 

The three of you were joined by the other Sans… Sanses? You weren’t sure what the plural word for ‘Sans’ was. You’d never think you’d have to come up with one. Tall and sultry sans took a spot next to you, and you noticed he was standing unnecessarily close to you. You chose to try and ignore that, instead focusing on how tiny little Sans’ hand was in yours. Black hoodie Sans stood a good bit away from the rest of the group, his hands shoved angrily into his pockets, his mouth pulled back into a grimace. “well, you gonna tell us? or are you just gonna stand there like an idiot?”

 

Woah. Attitude.

 

Your Sans seemed to have the same passing thought as he gave the rude skeleton a piercing glare. The tension in the air intensified along with their staring/glaring contest, the contest breaking when your Sans cleared his nonexistent throat, “what i’m thinking is this machine here was reacting greatly to the energy in the atmosphere. the big storm caused a huge static charge, which TIMM picked up on.”

 

“There is a scientific belief that there are multiple universes, and TIMM,” you gestured to the machine with your unoccupied hand, “has been designed to find and lock on to different matter and magic from those alternate universes. My hypothesis is that TIMM actually made contact with not one, but many different alternate universes.” You bit your lip, wondering if you should continue. Sans nodded to you and you took in a breath, “Well, I’m thinking that it was kind of an open link, you know? And when Sans touched the machine, TIMM must have locked on to his magic.”

 

Silence. It seemed that no one else was following you.

 

You sighed, looking down to little Sans, “Your name is Sans right?”

 

He only nodded, not sure where you were going with this.

 

“Do you have a bother named Papyrus?”

 

His eyes lit up, “YES! EVEN THOUGH HE IS A LAZYBONES, HE’S THE SECOND BEST BROTHER IN THE WORLD. BEHIND ME OF COURSE!”

 

Papyrus? A lazybones? You shook your head and peered over to the grumpy looking Sans, “And your name is Sans too, right?”

 

He only cut his eyes at you, confirming your question.

 

“And do you also have a brother named Papyrus?” You picked up the slight change in his demeanor, which turned somehow even colder. You were only given a curt nod as an answer.

 

Then, turning to tall Sans, you opened your mouth to repeat your questions. He held his hand up to stop you however, and you sputtered, your eyes landing on the hole that was open on the center of his hand. Why did that look familiar? “yeah, yeah. same here.”

 

Clearing your throat, you regained your composure, “Right.” You looked back to the original Sans, and noticed the look of slight confusion still on his face. You let out a breath, “These guys are you, Sans. There’s no way around it. I’m thinking that TIMM literally pulled them right out of their own universes when you touched it.”

 

Sans pulled his hand off of the machine, as if it had burned him, “that… how could that happen?”

 

You shook your head, “Maybe their universes were closer than we thought. And TIMM locked onto your magic, which was in turn theirs as well.”

 

A silence fell, which was broken by an uneasy question.

 

“well… what now?” You looked over to grumpy Sans, his hard gaze on you.

 

“Well, you guys can’t exactly stay here,” you mused, “I know from experience these desks don’t serve as great pillows.”

 

Your Sans grabbed your arm and pulled you to the side, little San’s hand slipping out of yours. Sans spoke to you in a deep hushed tone, “what are you proposing? they can’t go home with me, paps would flip.”

 

“Uh, well,” you chuckled uneasily, “They could come stay with me?”

 

“absolutely not.”

 

You blinked, “Sans, where else are they gonna go?”

 

“anywhere but your place.”

 

You placed a hand over his, “I can handle myself, Sans. And I’m sure I can handle them, too.”

 

“it’s… it’s not that,” his eyes flicked behind you, hardening for just a moment, “even if they’re me, there’s no way to know they aren’t dangerous,” his voice lowered to a growl, “and i don’t like the way longlegs is lookin’ at you.”

 

“Hey, hey,” you chuckled, patting his hand, “How about they stay with me tonight, and tomorrow we get them their own place to stay? Linda from housing owes me anyway.”

 

Sans gave you a questioning look, “for what?”

 

You winked, “That’s a story for another time. But what do you think?”

 

He faltered, seeming to consider your proposition. “you’ll call me if something goes wrong?”

 

“Yes, got you on speed dial.”

 

His hand moved to take yours tightly and he let out a sigh. “alright. please be careful.”

 

You gave him a bright smile and pulled him into a hug, “I will. Go home and get some sleep, alright? You need it.” You turned on your heel, making your way back to the three other monsters. “Alrighty, guys!”

 

Sans stayed where he was, his eyes trained hard on the tall version of him. He watched the way his eyes stuck to you, how they trailed all over your body as a dirty smirk was etched onto his face. Sans felt himself grimace. He’d definitely have to keep an eye on this one.

 

As you explained the plan, little Sans cheered, “IT’LL BE JUST LIKE A SLEEPOVER!!! A SLUMBER PARTY!!!”

 

You chuckled, placing your hands on the excitable skeleton’s shoulders, “Yeah, like a slumber party.”

 

“I’LL MAKE NEW-FRIENDSHIP-TACOS!!!”

 

Ah, that’s why he seemed so familiar. He was just like Papyrus, even if he was Sans. What was his universe like? You’d decided to ask him later. “It’s, uh, a little late for tacos, sweetie.” At his slightly fallen smile, you placed a hand on his arm, “But I would love to have some of your friendship tacos. Maybe for lunch tomorrow?”

 

He was practically vibrating with excitement now, “THE MAGNIFICENT SANS DEEMS THAT AS A WORTHY ALTERNATIVE!!!”

 

You checked the time on your phone and outwardly groaned. It was almost three in the morning. “Well, at least it looks like we won’t be coming in tomorrow… Today. Whatever.” You sighed. “Come on, guys. Oh, and pull your hoods up.”

 

Grumpy Sans scoffed at you, “why do we need ta do that?”

 

You were currently tugging your hoodie off over your head, doing your best to keep your shirt pulled down as it clung to the fabric. “Arms up, sweetie,” you gently ordered little Sans, who obediently complied, “Well, I’m not sure if the cameras are working properly. If they are, I don’t think we’d be ready to explain to everyone else why you guys are here just yet.” You tugged your hoodie down over little Sans’ head and shoulders, and you had to chuckle a bit. The jacket was just so big on him! “You need to hide your faces as much as possible.”

 

As you adjusted the hood over little Sans’ face, he gave you a happy smile and it instantly made your heart swell. Gosh he was just too cute. You looked over the other two. Grumpy Sans had his hood pulled up, the hoodie zipped up all the way. Tall Sans had his furry hood up too, but his short leather jacket was still unzipped, revealing the obvious rib cage beneath it.

 

You huffed and moved to stand in front of him, your hands busying themselves with trying to connect the zipper. He chuckled at you, and the deep and husky sound reached your ears in a tantalizing manner. He watched you fumble, amusement in his eyes. You tried to force down that damned warmth you knew was spreading on your face, finally getting the zipper to latch together. As you zipped it up, your fingers brushed against his sternum and he let out an involuntary sigh, “careful, cutie. ‘m pretty **sans** itive there.”

 

You sucked in a breath, his husky whispers making you feel weird. It wasn’t a bad weird, and you hated to admit it was… nice. You whipped away from him, trying to ignore the odd feeling in your chest. What was worse is that he used almost the same pun you had used earlier today, but it was, dare you say, sexy when he said it.

 

“Alright! Let’s head out! It’s late and I’m tired!”

 

Little Sans cheered, flapping the long fabric of your hoodie over his hands, “ME TOO!”

 

You gave one last wave to your Sans before leading the three skeletons to the door, little Sans dashing out into the hallway, followed by you and grumpy Sans, tall Sans the last one heading out.

 

He stopped when a hand reached out and grabbed him none-too-gently on the shoulder. He turned, eyes landing on a shorter, angry skeleton.

 

“you’d better keep your hands to yourself, pal,” Sans seethed, his left eye flaming a translucent blue, “or you’re gonna have a bad time.”

 

Tall Sans just raised a browbone at him, clearly unimpressed but amused, “oh, really? and why is that?” He turned to face Sans fully now, his own left eye alight with yellow magic, “she your mate or somethin’, _pal?_ ”

 

Sans sputtered, “n-no, but she’s someone important to me,” his gaze hardened, “and even if you’re some form of me, she comes first.”

 

His doppelganger let out a dark chuckle, but said nothing else as he turned and followed the group out of the lab.

 

Sans stood there for a moment, fuming in his own thoughts. Yeah, he’d really have to keep an eye on him.

 

 

 

It was still raining rather hard as you hurried back across the campus, and at some point little Sans had wormed his hand back into yours. It was adorable, really, watching the too big hood flop around over his eyes. His hand tightened around yours, “SO I DON’T LOSE YOU, HUMAN,” he claimed with a smile.

 

You fumbled around with your keys before hurriedly unlocking and opening the door to your apartment. Everyone shuffled in and you silently mourned your newly cleaned floors as mud and water gathered on the wood. “Eh, hold on just a moment.”

 

You scurried to your room and made a b-line for your closet. Shuffling around the various hanging and folded clothes, you searched for suitable attire for the wet skeletons in your living room. You never thought you’d think that sentence in your life, but things happen. Two pairs of basketball shorts and large shirts were picked for the two shorter skeletons, but finding something for tall Sans proved to be more of a challenge.

 

Luckily, from all the slumber parties you had with Sans and his friends, Papyrus had undoubtedly left a slowly growing collection of sweaters. You grabbed the first one you could find, pairing it with a long pair of sweat pants.

 

Adding three folded up blankets to your arms, you confidently shuffled back out into the living room. “Here you go, guys,” you plopped the blankets onto the smaller couch, handing the clothes to each skeleton, “Hope these fit well enough. But I suppose anything is better than those wet clothes, right?” You smiled, proud of yourself. “The bathroom is down the hall, first door on the left. And someone can change in my room, someone else can change in the guest room. Well, it’s supposed to be a guest room. Right now it’s kind of a junk room, but it’s right across the hall from the bathroom.”

 

They departed to the respective rooms to change, and while they were doing that you busied yourself with making comfortable enough sleeping spaces. You had a large sofa and a loveseat, and did your best to make them as comfortable as possible.

 

A sigh left your lips. It really felt like none of this was real. Like you were reading a sci-fi novel. Here you were, being a host to three monsters from alternate universes. It was funny to think about really. You worked in silence for a few minutes, having successfully finished one of the sofas.

 

You moved to the loveseat, fixing the pillows and laying the blanket out. “did you pick this out to spite me, or are you trying to hint at something?”

 

You jumped and gasped, whipping around at the voice that spoke from behind you. Tall Sans stood there, an unreadable grin on his face as he pointed to the sweater you had picked out for him.

 

Your face flushed as you read the big, bold words across the front.

 

**I’M FEELING BONELY**

“I, uh, I’m so sorry,” you felt your face flush even more, “I just, uh, I grabbed the first thing I thought would fit. Did I offend you?”

 

He took a step closer to you, and you took a respective one back. He took another one, and so did you. You could feel your heart beat in your ears as your calves bumped into the edge of the sofa. He only got closer, the look of sheer amusement on his face as his grin turned into a smirk. “y’know, if you’re feeling **bonely** ,” he moved ever closer, and you lost your balance, falling down on your rump. He took that opportunity to lean over you, his hands resting against the cushion on either sides of your head, and when he spoke his voice was deep and husky, “i could fix that.”

 

“Uh, um, could you, uh…” Dammit! Why couldn’t you speak? You felt your palms become sweaty and you dug your fingers into the rough fabric of the cushion. You could feel his eyes on you and you couldn’t deny the yellow tongue that darted out from his mouth. It teasingly traced over his teeth, taking especial care to sweep over his rather sharp-looking fangs. You let out a shaky breath, and you feared it was from excitement.

 

“HUMAN!”

 

You shot up, pushing your hands against the skeletons chest and shoving him out of the way. He tumbled down onto the couch, slight annoyance on his face that he was interrupted. Your face was still red and hot, and you hurried to right yourself as little Sans bounded into the room, the oversized t-shirt bouncing around his collarbones. Grumpy Sans shuffled in after, looking none too happy that he had to shed his black hoodie.

 

“Hey! I hope those clothes fit okay, we’ll, uh, have to go shopping or something. I’ll throw your clothes in the washer so you can have them for tomorrow, though.” You were still feeling jittery as you moved away from the loveseat, tossing the blanket on the still annoyed skeleton. You cast him a look, pursing your lips and giving him a glare.

 

Grumpy Sans had already taken the other couch, wrapping himself up and turning away. You sighed, respecting his decision. You could understand that he wasn’t too happy. He was ripped right out of his universe and placed into one he didn’t know. You’d be pretty moody, too.

 

“Well,” you looked down at little Sans, who had come to stand next to you, “Looks like you get to bunk with me for the night, sweetie. Is that okay?”

 

“YAY!!!” He pumped his fists in the air, darting down the hallway to your bedroom. “HUMAN SLEEPOVER!”

 

You heard a huff behind you. “didn’t ask me if i wanted to bunk…”

 

You twisted your look over your shoulder, a sweet, slightly malicious, smile on your lips, “Oh, don’t worry. If I’m feeling **bonely** , I’ve got Sweets.”

 

Tall Sans raised a browbone at you, folding his arms over his chest, “sweets?”

 

“Yeah, well, I can’t go around just calling all you guys Sans. That’d get confusing. So on our way here, I came up with a nickname for you guys. Little guy is Sweets, grumpy is Chief, and you,” you pointed at him, “You’re Ace. Sans is Boss, apparently.”

 

“why ace?”

 

You just shrugged, “It seemed to fit you. It was Sweets’ idea though. You should thank him.”

 

He just nodded, “well, guess i can’t complain then.” He pushed himself off the loveseat, his sultry demeanor back on his face, “didn’t catch your name though, cutie. can’t just walk around calling you human.”

 

You shuffled away a bit, noticing that he was standing incredibly close again, “It’s (Name). And it’s alright if you just call me human. Papyrus does it, and I can already tell that Sweets is gonna do it, too.”

 

He let out a little chuckle, “i like your name, though. suits you.”

 

You flushed again, casting your eyes to the side. “Well, uh, thank you.” You cleared your throat, “It’s pretty late, or early, or… whatever. I’m gonna head to bed.” Damn, why did you feel so awkward around him? He was just Sans. A tall, sultry, sexy- You shook your head, which earned you an odd look from Ace. He was still just Sans. “Uh, good night.”

 

You turned and rushed down the hall, Ace’s reply, “night, cutie,” falling on your red ears. He chuckled as you closed the door behind you, plopping back down on the loveseat.

 

He was going to have fun with this.


	3. In Which Alphys Can't Control Her Weeb

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You wake up to a wonderful breakfast food. And a fish woman tries to murder your houseguests.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Here's another thing! I really hope you guys like it! I've been writing down all these ideas for future chapters as well, sooooooo... yeah.

It’s a beautiful day outside.

 

Birds are singing, flowers are blooming.

 

There’s a skeleton in your bed.

 

You stared with wide eyes at the short skeleton that was currently snoozing, his arms wrapped around your waist with his face shoved into your stomach. For the first few moments you had to focus on not screaming aloud, but slowly the memories of the night before came back to you.

 

You got a call from Sans from the lab, and he was excited because something was going on with TIMM. You rushed over, something caused TIMM to act crazy, and when Sans accidentally touched the machine…

 

At that moment the skeleton snuggling you began do stir. A little sigh of content pushed through his teeth and he blearily opened his eyes. A smile broke out over your face as he looked up at you, a sleepy smile on his face.

 

“Good morning, human,” he mumbled, his voice a lot quieter than usual. You were surprised it even went that soft.

 

A tired chuckle came from you, “Mornin’, Sweets.”

 

He sat up, the blankets falling from his shoulders as he stretched his arms above his head. You rolled off the bed, running a hand through your no-doubt messy hair. You plucked your glasses from the bedside table and slipped them on.

 

Moments later, a sweet and tantalizing smell reached your nose and you felt your mouth start to water. “Something smells marvelous,” you mumbled. You looked over to the still dazed skeleton on the bed and smiled. He was so freaking cute! “C’mon, Sweets. I’m sure you could eat, huh?”

 

The little skeleton seemed to perk up immediately at the mention of food. He sprung from the bed, grabbing your hand with a large smile. “SMELLS LIKE PANCAKES!!!”

 

You chuckled, “I’m guessing you like pancakes?”

 

“MHMM! PAPY MAKES THEM A LOT! HE WON’T LET ME PUT TACO SEASONING IN THEM THOUGH,” Sweets shrugged as you led him to the door, “HIS LOSS, I GUESS.”

 

Giving him a smile, you replied, “Yeah, his loss.” As the two of you headed out into the hallway, you swung your gathered hands gently, “So what is your brother like?”

 

“OH, PAPY? HE’S A LAZYBONES IF I’VE EVER SEEN ONE. ALWAYS TAKING BREAKS AND SPENDING TIME A MUFFET’S CAFÉ,” he made a face, “HE ALWAYS DRINKS SWEET STUFF, LIKE HONEY AND SYRUP. WHICH IS PROBABLY WHY HE LIKES MAKING PANCAKES SO MUCH. HE ALSO HAS A WEIRD THING ABOUT HIS HOODIE, NEVER TAKES IT OFF. WHICH MEANS HE NEVER WASHES IT,” he shivered slightly, to which you chuckled.

 

“Is that so?”

 

“YEAH, BUT… HE’S PRETTY COOL. THE COOLEST, AFTER ME ANYWAY,” he placed a hand over his chest in a flourish, “I’M THE COOLEST, AFTER ALL!”

 

“You sure are, Sweets,” you cooed, and you knew for sure there were probably hearts in your eyes.

 

He gave you a cheesy smile as you two entered the kitchen, the smell of pancakes becoming more apparent.

 

What you weren’t expecting, though, was Ace busying himself with making the delicious breakfast food.

 

Even more than that, your expectations were blown out of the water when you saw he donned a pink frilly apron.

 

You quirked a brow. You didn’t even _own_ one of those.

 

“mornin’, girlie.” Ace’s smooth voice broke you out of your staring contest with the pink attire. “likin’ what you see?”

 

You let out a scoff, “You wish.” When he winked at you, you just glared back.

 

“GOOD MORNING, SIR ACE!” Sweets had bounded back into the kitchen (when did he leave?) with a very startled looking Felix in his arms.

 

“ey, mornin’, lil dude,” he greeted, flipping a pancake off of the skillet and onto the large awaiting stack, “hungry?”

 

“AFFIRMATIVE!”

 

“alright, go on and sit at the table, breakfast is almost done.” Sweets dashed off to your little eating area, where Chief was sitting, looking a little peeved that he was woken up, leaving you in the kitchen with the tall skeleton. He looked over at you, that same smile still on his face. It was almost… normal. “i take it you’re hungry, too?”

 

You opened your mouth to speak, but your stomach decided to do so for you. It gurgled rather loudly, and in response your face flushed a deep red.

 

Ace’s shoulders hunched over a bit, a pleasant chuckle coming from his chest, “i’ll, uh, i’ll take that as a yes then.”

 

You pouted slightly and looked away, your hands nervously twisting the hem of the large t-shirt you wore. After a moment you looked back, and noticed that Ace wasn’t wearing the (quite embarrassing) sweater you’d given him the night before. Instead he was clad in his grey jeans and leather jacket. But you didn’t…

 

“i did the laundry last night before i went to bed,” he said, not even looking at you, “you seemed pretty beat, and it was the least i could do for you lettin’ us stay here.”

 

You flushed again, “You… You didn’t have to do that. I mean, you’re making breakfast, too, so…”

 

At that moment, Ace whipped around and pinned you up against the counter behind you. A startled squeak left you as your hands scrambled for the edge of the counter, and you leaned back as he leaned forward. His ‘normal’ smile was gone, replaced with one that was devious. “if you’re that concerned, i can think of a few ways you could make it up to me.”

 

Jesus, what was up with this guy?! He really knew how to ruin a sweet moment. You furrowed your brows together despite how red you knew you were. You sucked in a silent breath, and willed your voice to be strong and assertive, “Not on your life, bonehead.”

 

After a few more moments of staring at you, he just shrugged and whipped back around to the stove pouring the last bit of batter onto the awaiting skillet. Now that he wasn’t looking at you, you placed a hand over your racing heart.

 

A rapid knocking came from the front door, and you considered it a blessing. You attempted to tug the wrinkles out of your pajama pants and darted from the kitchen to answer it. You couldn’t even get the door open all the way before it was busted open by a certain loud fish-lady.

 

“HEYA, PUNK, WHY AIN’T YOU ANSWERIN’ YOUR PHONE?!”

 

You were dazed on the floor, the force of the door sending you down on your rump. A startled gasp came from the dining table and within moments Sweets was at your side. “HUMAN, ARE YOU OKAY?!” He looked all over for some kind of injury, and when he found none he let out a sigh of relief.

 

“Ouch,” you mumbled as you stood and rubbed your attacked lower back, “yeah, I’m alright, Sweets.”

 

You blanched. Your heart stopped and your eyes went wider than dinner plates.

 

Undyne was here, standing in your doorway with the straightest face you had ever seen. She could see clearly into your apartment, and she eyed each individual skeleton. First to the sweet little blueberry who was currently coddling you, to the irate looking skeleton sitting at the dining table, to the tall skeleton that had just walked out of the kitchen to place three huge stacks of pancakes at said dining table.

 

“Uh, what the hell is going on here?” Her eyes landed on you again, her mouth pulled back into a strained grimace. Undyne didn’t like not knowing what was going on, and seeing your apartment full of skeletons was definitely something that needed explaining.

 

“UNDYNE!” Sweets dashed towards her, his arms out wide ready for a hug.

 

Undyne’s eye went wide and you heard the unmistakable crackle of her magic forming a weapon. “HOLD IT RIGHT THERE, YOU LITTLE WEIRDO!”

 

“Sweets, stop!” You reached out and snatched Sweets back from the irritated fish woman. From what you understood about Sweets’ universe, most of the roles were switched. That explained why he felt the need to approach Undyne so carelessly, as if she wasn’t a threat at all in his universe. From his dejected look, you weren’t sure the little sweetie grasped the intensity of the situation.

 

“H-HUMAN?” He looked up at you with watery(?) eyesockets, and it instantly broke your heart.

 

You placed a hand on his cheek, a comforting smile on your face, “Honey, I, uh, this Undyne might be a little different from yours. She’s not used to, well, maybe you’re used to a different version of her, y’know?”

 

He looked down to his feet, giving you a nod. You creased your brows together, trying to think of something that would cheer the little guy up. You smiled and leaned forward a bit, pressing your lips to his forehead in a chaste kiss. Sweets gasped and tensed a bit, but when you pulled back and looked down at him, his face was alight with a large smile and literal hearts in his eyes.

 

“You okay?”

 

With a pretty cyan dusted over his cheeks, he nodded, “YES, I AM OKAY, HUMAN.”

 

You straightened and turned to look back at Undyne, who just stared at you. She crossed her arms and stomped her foot. “Explain. Now.”

 

Moments later, and flustered and slightly out of breath Alphys appeared behind Undyne, her arms full of anime DVDs. “I-I grabbed all t-that I could-,” she stopped as she took in the scene as well, the DVDs falling from her arms and clattering on the wooden floor. Her eyes were stuck on the grimacing skeleton at the table, obviously even more pissed off that they were here.

 

You sighed and pinched the bridge of your nose. How could you forget? The fifth of every month was the day Alphys and Undyne came over to binge watch anime. Today was the fifth.

 

Ace came up behind you, slinging an arm around your neck. “so, what’s goin’ on, babe?” That cheeky grin was on his face again, he loved flustering you so damn much.

 

Your face flashed red as you scrambled to fling his arm from your body, sending him a warning glare. “Guys, come on, sit and I’ll explain.”

 

 

 

After about twenty minutes of explaining (it was hard to explain with Undyne laughing every five seconds), you leaned back against the sofa. A slightly energetic Sweets sat next to you, bouncing as he shoved another bite of pancake into his mouth. The movement made you slightly dizzy, but you really didn’t mind.

 

“So, wait, wait, wait,” Undyne was just now getting over her last fit of giggles, “so all these guys are Sans?”

 

You sighed, your eyes trained on the ceiling, “Yes, Undyne.”

 

She snorted, slapping her knee as if it was the funniest thing in the world.

 

You felt the couch dip and looked to your left, seeing Chief settle himself down next to you, albeit he kept a good distance. He noticed you looking, and locked eyes with you. He glared hard, trying to be intimidating. You only offered him a gentle smile, trying your best to be friendly.

 

You got along well with Sans and Sweets, and Ace was somewhat friendly with you (sometimes a little too friendly), but you wondered why Chief was so standoffish. Like the very act of existing was a burden to him. His face was always pulled into a grimace, his eyelights always a little dimmer than the others’. He stared at you for a few more seconds before looking away, shrugging up his shoulders and burying his jaw into the hood of his newly cleaned jacket.

 

“I-It’s like an a-anime I w-watched once,” Alphys whispered to herself, her clawed hands smushing in her cheeks slightly.

 

You raised a brow and looked at her, “What?”

 

“Y-Yeah!” She thought her a minute. “W-Well, not really, b-but it’s k-kind of like it!” She shuffled through the stack of DVDs she brought. You shared a glance with Undyne, hers was excited. Yours? Not so much. “T-This one!” Alphys pulled out a case and handed it to you.

 

You studied the case in your hands, and slowly your brows creased together. The anime was obviously a shojo, a group of fairly feminine looking guys all posed across the cover. They seemed to be in some sort of high school, although one of them could be from elementary school.

 

“Ouran High School Host Club?” You raised a brow. “How is this like this anime?”

 

“R-Reverse harem!” Alphys cheered, her face going all red. “A g-girl surrounded b-by boys that a-all secretly h-have some kind o-of r-romantic i-interest in her!” Alphys’ face went serious for a moment, “B-But this a-anime i-is so great b-because y-you’re a-a lot like Haruhi!”

 

You raised a brow, then looked back down to the DVD in your hand. You really hoped that was a compliment…

 

 

Hours later, your living room was filled with your silent guests as you all watched the anime. You’d gotten to episode sixteen, where the characters Haruhi and Hikaru go on a date. You found Tamaki, the ‘king’ of the club they were in, to be quite endearing if not a little oblivious. The episode was quite heartwarming, and you hated to admit you really liked the anime.

 

You were currently sitting between Sweets and Ace on the sofa, and you were thankful that Ace had decided to keep his hands to himself during the endeavor. Sweets was on his stomach, his mandible rested in his hands as he used your lap for a pillow. You couldn’t help but giggle each time the character Honey came on screen, as he reminded him of the cuddly skeleton next to you.

 

Chief was on the far end of the couch, snoozing away. He’d been knocked out from the beginning, resting his skull on the palm of his hand and leaning back against the soft cushions. You were surprised you could all fit on the couch, aside from it being the larger one. Alphys and Undyne had commandeered the loveseat for themselves, which you didn’t mind.

 

What you did mind, however, was the fact that they were whispering to one another, casting glances in your direction every now and then. One time, you managed to catch Alphys’ eyes, and when you squinted at her suspiciously she held back a squeal. “I ship them s-so much!”

 

You sighed and picked up the remote, pressing pause. The show halted at about the time where Hikaru finds Haruhi in the church. “Alright, what’s so darn secretive?”

 

Undyne snickered as Alphys flushed, nervous all of a sudden. Didn’t think you’d get caught, did ya?

 

You raised a brow at your lack of an answer. “Well?”

 

“W-We were, uh, talking about our ships…” Alphys ducked her head down, her face flushed even more.

 

You sometimes had trouble following Alphys’ vocabulary, but you knew what a ship was. And apparently these were ships that pertained to you. You crossed your arms, waiting for her to elaborate.

 

“Aw, come on! It won’t be any fun to tell ya!” Undyne offered you a toothy grin. “We’ll just have to wait to see who wins!”

 

You rolled your eyes, pressing play on the remote. You’d find out. Eventually.

 

 

It was quite dark outside by the time the anime had finished, and you were surprised you could finish it all in one day! It was quite a charming anime, and you had to applaud Alphys for bringing it.

 

“So, what did you mean that I was a lot like Haruhi, anyway?” You were currently pressing yourself back into the sofa, being gentle with the now snoozing Sweets in your lap.

 

“Because you’re really smart, but you can be pretty oblivious sometimes,” Alphys said with confidence, not a stutter coming from her.

 

You opened your mouth to retort, but there was a knock at your door. You struggled to get up without waking the skeleton on you, but Undyne held up a hand and swiftly answered the door.

 

“yeah, yeah i’m sure she’s fine, pap- undyne?” The short skeleton looked up at the fish lady in horror, his phone pressed to his skull a little too hard.

 

You went rigid as Sans’ voice reached you. Oh, god. Was he gonna be mad? You knew that you couldn’t let many people outside of you and Sans know about the… accident. While you were lost and worrying yourself in your thoughts, Ace took that as a perfect opportunity to sling his arm around your shoulders.

 

Before you had the chance to fling it off of you, he pulled you close to his side. “Hey! What’re you-,” you stopped yourself. He smelled… Really nice. You felt your face get warm and you involuntarily breathed in a little more of him than you wanted to. He had a sweet smell, it was distant and a little musky, but it was sweet nonetheless. It could have lulled you to sleep if you let it.

 

Ace grinned, first down at you, then to this universe’s version of him. Sans still stood in the doorway, and as he looked upon the scene before him, his eyelights dimmed to almost nothing. He had ended the call with Papyrus, whom was worried because you weren’t answering his awesome texts, and shoved both hands into his jacket pockets.

 

And they stared at one another.

 

You noticed this and shot up, sending Sweets into the floor and out of his sleep, landing on the floor with a startled ‘MWEH!’ You stood, feeling jittery and nervous now. Sans didn’t look too happy, and you figured it was because Alphys and Undyne now knew their little secret.

 

“Sans, I’m so so sorry,” you started, rushing to him, “I really didn’t know this was going to happen!”

 

He placed his easy going smile on his skull, mood instantly lighting up as you paid him some attention, “no prob, kiddo. paps was just worried about ya, so i figured i could make a house call.” He flicked his gaze to the skeleton lounging on the couch, looking as if he owned the place, “’m glad i did.”

 

You let out a sigh, “So you’re not mad?”

 

“nah.”

 

You smiled, “Well, now that Alphys and Undyne know, we’ll be able to have more alibis I guess.”

 

Sans blinked. That’s what you were talking about? Not the whole cuddling with an alternate him? Well, at least you had your priorities straight. “heh, yeah. guess so.”

 

You turned, lifting Sweets off the ground. He was still rather dazed, and you announced that you were going to get him situated for bed. Sans wasn’t worried about the fact that you had another skeleton in your bed.

 

No, he was worried that the tall one was going to make his life hell.

 

Ace grinned.

 

Of course he was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a tumblr, but I have no idea what I'm doing on it. I'm just a wee babbie.
> 
> https://www.tumblr.com/blog/queenbritkiir
> 
> Don't judge me. I have no idea what I'm doing lol


	4. In Which Doctor Gaster Is Not Amused

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well, your secret is out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heya! I'm so sorry for the wait! Things have been crazy, so I hope you guys aren't too angry with me! Hope you enjoy this chapter.

You shuffled back into the living room from tucking Sweets into your bed. You were honestly surprised how light the little guy was!

 

You noticed that Chief was still out cold, so you grabbed a blanket and gently threw it over him. His face, which had been twisted into a look of mild discomfort, softened quite considerably. He almost looked happy. You were kind of amazed that he was able to sleep while the living room was full of people. Amazed and a little envious.

 

Undyne was chatting semi-quietly with Ace in the kitchen while Alphys seemed to be explaining something to Sans. You felt quite awkward really, and you subconsciously tugged at your shirt. Sensing your presence, Sans looked up and locked eyes with you. “Hey,” you waved, an odd little smile on your face.

 

“thanks, alph. hang on,” he quickly stepped over to you, speaking in a lowered voice, “can i talk to you outside for a minute?”

 

“Uh, sure?” Sans wrapped his hand around your wrist and tugged you to the door, and you shared a worried look with the short yellow lizard you passed.

 

You stood outside your apartment, bare feet slightly cold from the wooden floor beneath you. You let out a happy sigh as the door clicked behind the short skeleton. “Sooooooo what’s up?”

 

His gaze hardened at you, “what happened to getting them their own place today?”

 

You blanched slightly. You had totally forgotten… “Uh, well, to be totally honest it slipped my mind. I woke up and there were pancakes and then Undyne tried to murder Sweets and then we watched anime so… yeah.”

 

Sans let out a frustrated sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose bone in slight frustration. “(Name)…”

 

“I know! I know! I’m sorry. I really dropped the ball on that one. I’ll go to the housing office tomorrow though. I promise.”

 

When he looked back up at you, you tried to give him a convincing smile. Something still seemed to be bothering him. But you could tell from his look he wasn’t going to be sharing anything at the moment. “are you gonna be alright here tonight? i could see if undyne and alphys can stay with you.”

 

“What? No, Sans, I’m fine.”

 

“you sure?”

 

“Yes, I’m sure.”

 

“…you really sure?”

 

“Sans.”

 

“alright fine.” He grumpily stuffed his hands into his jacket pockets.

 

You pursed your lips, crossing your arms over your chest. “Sans, what’s wrong?”

 

“nothin’, i just…” He avoided your gaze, looking off to the side.

 

“You just…?”

 

“’m just worried.”

 

You blinked. Well, that’s not what you were expecting. What was he worried about? You opened your mouth to say something, but the sound of the door opening stopped you. You snapped your jaw shut as Alphys and Undyne emerged, joining you and Sans in the breezeway of your apartment.

 

“Oh, hey guys. You headed out?”

 

Undyne let out an exasperated yawn before answering. “Yeah, it’s getting pretty late. I gotta be at the station pretty early tomorrow, anyways. I get to spend eight hours in a patrol car, so might as well get some rest.”

 

“Ew,” you made a face, “Man, I couldn’t be a cop. People are shitty enough, but I’ve seen how they act towards the police. Not nice.”

 

The fish woman shrugged, “Eh, people are shitty whether I’m a cop or not. I get more issues when I’m outta uniform.”

 

You visibly winced. The monsters had been part of the human world for about two years now, and as expected most of the humans weren’t too keen on their new neighbors. Yes, you admit that at first you were a little intimidated by them, and for a year you tried your best to just blend into the background. Sometimes you went to unnecessary lengths to avoid any confrontation.

 

But then you met Sans, and all of that changed. Now, you work with a skeleton and have anime nights with a lizard and a fish woman. Your closest friends were monsters, and you honestly wouldn’t have it any other way.

 

“Well, thanks for coming.” You gave Undyne a hug, to which she took as an invitation to lift you off the ground and squeeze the life out of you.

 

“Don’t have too much fun, punk!”

 

You gasped, “PLEASE don’t snap my SPINEEE!” Your arms did a weird flail as she set you back down on the wooden ground and you sucked in a breath. “Jesus, woman, you’re gonna be the death of me.” You then turned to the quiet lizard monster next to her, giving Alphys a smile. “Thanks for coming, Al.”

 

She moved in to hug you, which was awkward considering she was so much shorter than you. “T-Thanks for having us, (Name).” She pulled away and gave you a nervous smile, “A-And don’t worry. Your s-secret is safe with us.”

 

“Thanks, I really appreciate it.”

 

You waved away the two monster women and you were left with Sans again, who had grown incredibly quiet. Giving him a look, you sucked in a determined breath. “Sans.”

 

He looked up at you, a startled sound coming from him as you wrapped your arms around him, lifting him up off the ground in a hug. His legs kicked for a moment as he tried to wiggle out of your hug, but you held firm.

 

“uh, kid?”

 

“I don’t want you to worry.”

 

Little beads of sweat lined Sans’ forehead. He could feel you speak, and being this close to you caused a light blue to dust his face. He stayed silent, and you took this as a moment to keep talking.

 

“I know that Ace makes you feel uneasy, and Chief is a little standoffish. But I can take care of myself. I’m not doing this because I want to, I’m doing this because I have to. Because these guys are you, and I would do anything to help you.” You set him back down and grabbed his hands. A confident smile crossed your lips as you ran your thumbs over his bony knuckles. “You’re my best friend, Sans. I love you and I would do anything for you. You know that, right?”

 

He huffed out a breath through his teeth, trying to keep his own grin from taking over his skull. “yeah, i know. just… be careful, alright?”

 

“Pssh, when am I not careful?”

 

“remember that time you face planted in front of an entire crowd of people? because you tried to be cool for my bro?”

 

“…we don’t speak of that.”

 

Sans let out a chuckle at your perplexed look. “call me if you need me, ok?”

 

Your face brightened up and you nodded, “Yes, sir.” You leaned down to give him another hug, “And tell Paps that I’m sorry for not answering his awesome texts. Make up something about me being busy?”

 

“will do.”

 

“Thanks.” You stood and turned to reenter your apartment, “Night, Sans. I’ll see you tomorrow, kay?”

 

“night, kiddo.” Then he blipped away in the simple blink of an eye, a lazy grin on his face.

 

You locked the door behind you, a tired yawn escaping you as you shuffled into your living room. An amused smile crossed your face as you took in the two passed out skeletons in your living room. Chief seemed to have made himself more comfortable, wrapping the blanket you’d draped over him around his body. He was now curled into a ball, sleeping rather peacefully on the large sofa.

 

Ace was knocked out as well, laying on the loveseat that was much too short for him. His long legs dangled over the armrest and his left arm was draped over his eyes. You watched his ribcage rise and fall with his soft breathing. You weren’t really sure how skeletons breathed, or if they even really needed to. They didn’t have lungs or… anything aside from magic and bones.

 

You let out a quiet sigh and grabbed a blanket off the back of the loveseat. You tried to be as quiet as possible as you draped the blanket over the tall skeleton. He twitched slightly and his arm raised, a yellow light locking on your eyes.

 

“heya, cutie.”

 

Your hands stopped and gripped the edge of the blanket slightly, your brows furrowing together, “Ah, sorry. I didn’t mean to… Did I wake you?”

 

He shrugged, “eh, ‘m a light sleeper.”

 

You nodded, fixing the edge of the blanket you were holding to the sofa. “Well, sorry about that.”

 

He held out a hand, a mischievous smile on his face. “you could keep me company and we’ll call it even.”

 

“God, are you ever serious?”

 

“oh, i’m **dead** serious, sweetheart.”

 

“Ugh, I should’ve just let you freeze.” You turned on your heel and started walking to your room, hiding your flushed face away from the smug skeleton. “Goodnight, Ace.”

 

You closed your door before you heard a response, moving quickly to snuggle down in your bed.

 

“MMH… HUMAN?”

 

You sucked in a breath, “Sorry, Sweets, I tried to be quiet…”

 

He blinked blearily at you before he proceeded to snuggle into your side. He let out a soft breath, and soon he was asleep again. You smiled and followed suit, sleep greeting you faster than you expected.

 

 

You woke the next morning to Sweets foot jabbed into your back. You grimaced as you sat up, the area rather sore. He was flayed out across the bed in his sleep, so you carefully stood and readied yourself for the day.

 

You emerged from your room, closing the door behind you quietly as you fixed your glasses on your face. The smell of coffee almost stopped you in your tracks. God, you loved coffee. It was your drug. Most mornings you couldn’t even focus without it, and you would move through the day like a zombie until you had at least one cup of the stuff.

 

“mornin’, sweetheart.”

 

Your eyes landed on the skeleton sitting leisurely at your dining table. Ace gave you a smile before taking a sip from the mug in his hand, his other hand absentmindedly petting a stretched out Felix. You narrowed your eyes at the smug looking cat. Traitor.

 

“coffee’s fresh if you want some before you leave.”

 

You nodded, mumbling out a, “Thanks.” You moved to busy yourself with your own mug of coffee, the sounds ringing out rather loudly in the quiet apartment. You didn’t add any creamer or sugar, and moved to join the skeleton. You sat down in the chair next to him, holding the hot mug in both of your hands. You could feel his eyes on you and you tried your best to ignore the way your cheeks flushed.

 

“I, uh, I’m gonna go talk to Linda today. To get you guys your own place.”

 

“really?” Ace leaned forward, scratching Felix behind his ears. “ya don’t have to do that.”

 

You shrugged, “Better than sleeping on the couch, though.”

 

“eh, i don’t mind.”

 

“Can’t really be that comfortable, Ace.”

 

“anything’s comfortable as long as i can see your face every mornin’.”

 

You choked slightly on your coffee, your eyes flitting to land on his smug face. You hurriedly set the mug down, raising your hands to wipe away any droplets of the warm liquid. He started to chuckle as you huffed out a breath, “Why do you do that?”

 

“do what, sweetheart?” There was such unbridled amusement in his eyesockets, it kind of made you mad.

 

“Do you get a kick out of messing with me? It’s not cool to just flirt like that, especially to someone you just met. Especially especially if you’re just doing it as a joke!” You crossed your arms, trying your best to keep your voice down. You knew Chief was still asleep just a few feet away.

 

Bony fingers reached out and held your chin, causing your face to turn. Oh, god, he was so close to you! When had he moved? His eyelights were bright as they bored holes into you and you couldn’t help the way your breathing hitched. “who says ‘m joking? maybe i just love how red your face gets, or how flustered you become from just a few simple words?”

 

It felt like your heart was about to beat right out of your chest, and when you opened your mouth to say something nothing came out.

 

Ace chuckled softly, pulling you ever closer. “i have a theory. never been one to get attached so quick, but,” he ran a yellow tongue over his fangs, causing you to shudder, “you’ve caught my interest, kitten. which means you must be real special to one of us.”

 

You wanted to move, to pull away and leave like this had never happened. You could feel your heart in your throat and your face felt like it was on fire. You were gripping the table so tightly it almost hurt, but for some reason you just couldn’t pull away. And he’s so close…

 

He let out a sigh, his bony thumb slowly drifting over your bottom lip. You shivered, mentally cursing yourself. So much for your strong words earlier… “you mean somethin’ to me. not sure what it is yet… but it’s definitely somethin’.”

 

You couldn’t even focus on his words. It was like his touch was amplified, sending tingles all over your body. Your eyes were unfocused and you hated the way he was making you feel. You really… really hated it. Right?

 

He released you then, sitting back casually against his chair. “should get goin’, sweetheart. you’re gonna be late.”

 

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. You really needed to get out of here. You stood abruptly and darted out of your apartment.

 

 

You arrived to the lab in a daze, cheeks flushed in a seemingly permanent red. You puffed out your cheeks, trying to ignore that awful fluttering in your stomach. God, the nerve of that guy! Thinking he could just mess with you like that.

 

As you somewhat marched down the hall you didn’t notice how weird everyone was acting. It was like they were all trying to be on their best behavior, all posture and smiles.

 

You finally reached the lab you shared with Sans and swiped your key card, your cheeks still puffed out and red. You opened the door, grumbling something about “stupid skeletons” as you entered.

 

“Sans? I’m here. Sorry I’m la-,”

 

You stopped dead in your tracks as your eyes met with an incredibly nervous Sans. His glasses were slightly crooked and his smile seemed a bit forced.

 

And the lab was unexplainably clean.

 

The lab was never clean.

 

“Uh, Sans? What’s going on?”

 

“Ah, Ms. (Name), you’ve decided to join us.”

 

A strained scream almost leapt from your throat as another voice spoke from next to you. You jumped almost three feet in the air out of your skin as you whipped around to look at the newcomer.

 

“D-D-Doctor Gaster?!”

 

Jesus, why was he here?! He never e _ver_ visited your lab unless you and Sans were in trouble. But he didn’t know about the… accident did he? You felt your heart sink down to your stomach.

 

“Good morning, my dear. How are you?” The doctor’s face was pulled into a pleasant smile, his eyes glistening behind his glasses as he awaited your answer.

 

You let out a nervous chuckle. “Eh hehe, I’m, um, I-I’m great, thank you for, um, asking…”

 

“That’s lovely to hear, considering your company you have staying at your apartment. How on earth do you get any rest?” He pulled out his phone, a large smartphone with a video pulled up. It was of the night of the accident, a security video from the looks of it, about the time where you led the skeletons out of the lab. It was enough to see Chief’s face.

 

“I think we need to have a talk about this.”

 

Gaster’s sinister look was enough to give you a heart attack.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoo, Dadster is mad at you.


	5. In Which Doctor Gaster Is Actually Quite Amused

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You almost have a heart attack and look for a boot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy crap, can I just say thank you?? I'm really grateful for all the love I've gotten for this little story. Like I look at the comments and kudos and I'm just like "??? okay???" It really fills me with such happiness to see you guys enjoying something I'm having so much fun writing!
> 
> I love all of you!

God, you felt like you were back in school. Like you had just gotten in trouble for disrupting class and now you were following your principal to their office to get a good scolding. Except this time, you weren’t in school. You were at work, and you were following _the_ boss to his office, probably about to lose your _job._

 

You weren’t alone though. You were vaguely aware of the equally nervous skeleton shuffling down the hall next to you, his hands stuffed into the pockets of his lab coat. Well, at least you’d go through this together. You didn’t think you would’ve survived going at it alone.

 

Sans nudged you slightly, and when you looked at him he gave you a semi-comforting little smile. “ya alright, kiddo?”

 

“I feel like I’m gonna vomit and die. So, yeah. Feel great.” Your hands were currently wringing the life out of your own lab coat, as if holding onto it would make everything automatically better.

 

“hey, it’ll be alright. he just has a **bone** to pick with us.”

 

You groan quietly, “Sans…”

 

“what? did i **rib** ya the wrong way?”

 

“Please stop.”

 

“no need **tibia-** fraid. everything will be just **spine.** ”

 

“Wow, two in one go. I applaud you.” The little smile that tried to break out on your face disappeared as you finally reached Gaster’s office, the empty feeling in your stomach returning at full force.

 

Gaster walked in first, you and Sans shuffling in behind him as he closed the large wooden door and moved gracefully to his desk. The two of you stood awkwardly in the center of the room. “Please, have a seat.” The tall monster sat in his own large chair, motioning to the plush ones situated on the other side of the desk.

 

You silently obliged, sitting straight up and off the back of the chair. You just couldn’t relax, muscles tense and eyes wide. Sans, on the other hand, had no problem making himself comfortable in his own chair, leaning back while his arms rested over the sides.

 

“Now, Ms. (Name),” Gaster spoke, his deep voice making you snap up even straighter.

 

“Y-Yes?”

 

“I would like to ask for your explanation to this… situation.” He leaned forward, his interlocked fingers nudged just under his chin as he watched you from behind his glasses. “Please, take your time.”

 

God, Gaster could be intimidating. You’d only met him a few times before, and each time he would leave you a blubbering, bumbling mess with anxiety and a high heart rate. You also knew he was incredibly strong with a high LV count. Just learning about all of that in itself was a hassle, but learning that you worked for someone that could just k _ill you with the swipe of his hand_ definitely gave you a reason to be nervous.

 

The feeling of someone grabbing your hand pulled you out of your hectic thoughts, and you looked to your right. Sans had sat up, his eye lights searching your face. His hand held onto yours tightly. He knew you were scared, hell, he was still scared of Gaster sometimes, too. But you were strong, he knew that. He gave your hand a reassuring squeeze, ‘i’m here for you.’

 

You let out a shaky breath, “Okay… Well, the day before yesterday is when… it happened. It was just a normal day, reading TIMM’s data and keeping an eye out for any changes in the readings.”

 

Gaster nodded, “Yes, your report was excellent, by the way.”

 

You could feel your face flush slightly. Oh, god why did he have to compliment you _and_ be scary?? “Well… thank you. Um, anyway, I left for the day and headed home. It started storming really badly, and it was actually the storm that woke me. Then I got a call from Sans,” you cut your eyes over to the skeleton next to you, “who had stayed at the lab.”

 

He just shrugged, lazy grin deterring any harsh feeling you had towards him. “He told me that TIMM was acting up, probably in response to the highly electric charge in the atmosphere due to the storm. So, I came back to the lab. Now, this was about,” you paused to recall that night, “One in the morning? The storm had gotten pretty bad around that time. And when I got here, TIMM was definitely picking up on something. Magic and matter that wasn’t from this universe! It was pretty cool, actually.”

 

“Were you able to record any of this specific data?”

 

You winced, “Unfortunately, no. Something struck the lab. Lightning, maybe? We’re not sure, but it was strong enough to knock everything out of sorts. Then Sans accidentally touched the machine, and once he did TIMM let off this crazy wave of energy.” You rubbed the back of your head, which was still slightly sore. “The wave was strong enough to knock me off my feet. I hit my head and blacked out, so did Sans.”

 

Gaster leaned forward more, waiting for you to continue.

 

You gulped, hating how dry your throat had gotten all of a sudden. “Then, I woke up to… uh… Three more Sans? Sans from alternate universes.”

 

“And how do you propose they arrived here? In this very universe?”

 

You blinked, “Uh, well, I think that when Sans made contact with TIMM, it read his magic and searched for other traces of it. And when it successfully locked on to that similar magic, it grabbed the source and brought it here…” You were beginning to feel nervous again, “And… Surprise, skeleton monsters from another universe!”

 

The doctor leaned back against his large chair, eyes not leaving your frame for a moment. “And where are these… alternate neighbors?”

 

“Um… at my apartment?”

 

Gaster nodded, standing from his position, hands clasped neatly behind his back. “So,” he took slow steps around from his side of the desk, “rather than reporting an incident such as this to me, you took it upon yourself to hide it?”

 

“Um…” you sunk down into your chair, hands gripping the arm rests tightly. You couldn’t even feel Sans hand on yours anymore.

 

“Not only that, but you even went as far as to house a possibly dangerous person or persons from a handful of universes we know absolutely nothing about?”

 

You could feel tears starting to burn in your eyes, “They… They aren’t dangerous, Doctor. They just… They were ripped from their homes and thrown into ours…” You could feel your voice starting to waver. God, you really fucked up…

 

“hey, doc, give her a break. she was just trying to do what she thought was right-,”

 

“No, no… He’s right, Sans.” You let out a shaky breath. “I… It was my idea to let them stay with me. I wasn’t thinking properly.”

 

Gaster came to lean back onto his large wooden desk, his arms crossed in front of his broad chest. He was wearing a brown turtleneck sweater under his lab coat, long dark blue slacks covering his legs. It was weird how you focused on random details when you were in trouble. Kind of like seeing these things would take you out of a situation, making everything change.

 

“Well, I suppose there is only one option with which we could move forward.”

 

The tears hand pooled, making everything seem like it was swimming in your sight. ‘Oh, god. There goes my job.’ You covered your face, your lower lip starting to tremble.

 

“I would like to meet them.”

 

You jolted, your head snapping up from your hands. “W-What? You… You’re not going to fire me??”

 

The doctor let out a laugh, soft and smooth as his shoulders shook. “Fire you? Dear child, why on earth would I do that?”

 

You sniffled and wiped the tears away that had strayed down your cheeks. “B-Because, I… I…”

 

Gaster took one of your hands away from your face and beckoned you to stand. He pulled out a handkerchief from his coat pocket and handed it to you. “You are incredibly important to this operation, my dear. Only you and Sans know how to work and read the data, and now the two of you are more educated in the subject than even I. It would paint me as a fool to let you go now.”

 

So, you weren’t losing your job. You cast a look behind you to the still seated skeleton, who just gave you a happy thumbs up. You felt an explosion of happiness in your gut as a bright smile broke out across your face. Without thinking, you threw your arms around the tall monster’s shoulders and let out a happy laugh, “Thank you! Thank you thank you thank you!”

 

Gaster sputtered for a moment, the hug obviously taking him off guard. He let out a little chuckle and placed a hand on the top of your head, ruffling your hair slightly. “You’re quite welcome.”

 

 

“ugh, i don’t wanna go,” Chief whined from his spot on the couch. He wasn’t too keen on having to go anywhere, opting to laying on the couch all day instead. He crossed his arms, avoiding your piercing gaze. Although you were happy he was actually conversing with you, he was still being a turd about everything.

 

You huffed out a sigh, retrieving his freshly cleaned jacket from your dryer. Apparently, while you were gone, Sweets had accidentally startled him, causing him to squirt almost an entire bottle of mustard on himself. Luckily, you had plenty of practice on getting condiments out of clothing. All those times babysitting Frisk were really paying off.

 

“He just wants to meet you guys,” you inspect the jacket closely, noting how old and worn it actually was. Must be really special to Chief… “I’ll be there the whole time. Don’t worry.”

 

Chief let out a scoff, “is that supposed to make me feel better about it?” He leaned back and closed his eyes, a stubborn grimace on his face.

 

“Here, grumpy pants.” You tossed his warm jacket on him as you walked past, moving to grab your keys from the table.

 

The jacket landed on his face and he jumped slightly, raising his hands to move it. He stopped though, breathing in the new scent. It was soft, a little floral but not overbearingly so. He left the jacket there for a moment, just inhaling the scent. Was… Was this how you smelled? It was… nice.

 

Chief gently plucked the jacket from his face, red irises landing on your frame just a few feet away. You were sorting through some letters, mumbling to yourself as you read who they were from, flicking through the stack with simple movements. He felt an odd wrenching in his chest. His soul to be more exact.

 

He pushed himself up from the couch, slipping the jacket on over his bare arms. He hid his face down in the furry hood as he moved to stand next to you. “hey.”

 

You looked up from the letter you were opening, “Hm?”

 

Chief looked away briefly, shrugging his shoulders up, “…thanks.”

 

You felt your heart swell slightly. You were making progress with him! Brownie points for you! A small smile crossed your lips, “No problem.”

 

“HUMAN!” Little footsteps patted across the wooden floors, the littlest skeleton coming to a stop next to you. Sweets really was the littlest, him being the shortest, Sans and Chief being the same height (they reached your chin), and Ace towering over you by just a few inches.

 

You looked down, taking in the skeleton’s distraught-looking face, “Yes, Sweets? What’s wrong?”

 

“I…” He flushed a light blue. “I CAN’T FIND MY OTHER BOOT.”

 

You let out a soft chuckle as you placed the letters back on the table. “Where did you take them off?”

 

“AT THE FRONT DOOR, BUT NOW I CAN ONLY FIND ONE!”

 

“Alright, alright. Let’s retrace our steps, okay? It couldn’t have gotten far.” Sweets nodded, determination in his eyes as he took your hand, retracing his steps throughout the entire apartment. Your apartment wasn’t that big, really, but there were countless times where you’d lost things. It wasn’t impossible.

 

Chief leaned back against the wall, letting out a breathy sigh as he watched you and Sweets skitter about the apartment.

 

The front door opened and Chief rolled his eyes slightly as Ace came in. He gently nudged the door shut with his boot.

 

“DID YOU FIND IT YET?!”

 

“Nope, not yet, Sweets.”

 

“I SHALL CONTINUE TO LOOK OVER HERE, THEN.”

 

Ace let out an amused chuckle, an unlit cigarette held gently between his teeth. “did i miss somethin’?”

 

Chief stuffed his hands into his pockets, “the squirt can’t find his boot.”

 

Ace gave a nod of understanding, leaning back against the door as he watched you and Sweets come to look in the main room. “Well, it’s not back there. Maybe it’s in here somewhere?”

 

Sweets began to search behind the entertainment center, “IT MUST BE!”

 

You chuckled and started to busy yourself with looking behind the couches. As you were doing so, you didn’t feel the wandering eyes that roamed your body. Ace really didn’t seem to mind you moving around so fluidly, bending this way and that as you searched for the missing boot.

 

Thank the stars for that missing boot.

 

He wasn’t lying when he had said that you intrigued him, and even he didn’t know in what way. There was just something that drew him to you. Something that made him want to see your face flushed in that pretty red, made him want to be the reason your eyes were hazy and unfocused. Made him want to hear you whisper out his name. Not Ace. No, not that name. His actual name.

 

“dude, you’re bein’ creepy,” Chief scowled from next to him.

 

Ace blinked slowly, his grin dropping slightly. “am i? i just like what i see.” He kept his voice down as you shuffled about the room, searching high and low for that damn boot.

 

Chief made a face, “that doesn’t make it any less disgusting. she’s a human.”

 

The taller skeleton let out a chuckle, “doesn’t change a thing. don’t act like you don’t feel it too.”

 

A scowl replaced Chief’s grimace. “the hell are you talkin’ about?”

 

“you know exactly what i’m talking about.” Ace’s yellow eye light danced over and landed on the shorter skeleton. “you know. that slight twist in your soul when she’s close, that gentle wrench you feel when she walks away.” He got a far off look on his face, looking away from Chief. “you know what that means, and so do i. been feeling it since we got here. no doubt the little guy feels it, too.”

 

Chief shuffled a few steps away, ducking his slightly red skull into his hood. “…you’re a freak, you know that?”

 

“Aha! Found it!”

 

“HUZZAH! THANK YOU, HUMAN!” Ace watched as Sweets skittered up to you, retrieving the boot you had found under the loveseat.

 

“don’t worry, chief,” Ace sent Chief a look, making him grimace slightly, “sooner or later, you’ll agree with me.”

 

“Alright guys. Let’s go!”

 

“YAY! FIELD TRIP!”

 

 

“Interesting…”

 

Gaster was currently slowly circling a peeved-looking Chief, keeping in mind to keep a good distance. He could feel little flames of malice coming from the skeleton. Two floating hands followed him, jotting down any thought he deemed he needed to remember.

 

Honestly, and Chief hated to admit this, it did make him feel a little better that you were in the room. No one in their right mind would ever be completely comfortable being looked at like an animal. You weren’t close to him, but you just being there made it a little easier to deal with.

 

Gaster moved away from Chief, and the shorter skeleton let out a breath he wasn’t aware he had been holding. The doctor was now focusing on the tallest skeleton of the bunch and Chief took this opportunity to occupy the space next to you.

 

You were sitting on a desk, the original Sans sitting next to you, watching as Sweets doodled around on some copy paper you had given him to occupy himself. After a few seconds you realized Chief standing on the other side of you.

 

“Hey, you okay?”

 

“that was fucking terrifying.”

 

You let out an airy chuckle, “Yeah, Doctor Gaster can be pretty intimidating. You should’ve seen me this morning. I cried in front of him.”

 

Chief raised a brow bone, “really?”

 

“Yeah! He scares the shit out of me sometimes.” You turned your attention back as Gaster started inspecting a stone-faced Ace. You noticed Gaster’s eyes tended to linger on the cracks along Ace’s skull. Ace did his best to avoid eye contact as he shoved his hands as deep into his pockets as they would go. He seemed rather uncomfortable.

 

Ace’s gaze met yours, causing you to jolt just slightly. You gave him a sweet smile and a little thumbs-up, trying your best to be supportive. His stoic face gave in to a little smile in return.

 

“HUMAN, LOOK!” A colorful piece of paper was shoved into your face, causing you to blink a few times.

 

You took the paper into your own hands, pulling it down so you could see the whole thing. It was a slightly crude drawing, but from what you could tell Sweets had drawn you, himself, Sans, Ace, and Chief. They were all colored accordingly, spread out across the page. You let out a little chuckle. He’d drawn you and himself holding hands.

 

“This is wonderful, Sweets.” You gave his skull a little pat, nudging Sans to look at the drawing. “Look, he drew you, too!”

 

Sans gave a little chuckle, not really sure how to praise, well, himself. “’s pretty good, kiddo. i think that’s frame worthy.”

 

“REALLY?!” There were literal stars in Sweets’ eyes as he grinned.

 

“yeah. good job.”

 

At this time, Gaster had come to stand in front of you, Ace following behind him but keeping a distance. “I would like to run a few tests over the next few days. Take some magic readings, particle splicing and splitting, just a few simple runs should do just fine.”

 

Each of the skeletons stilled except Sweets, who just gave you a concerned look. Unbeknownst to you, none of them had a… great past with their versions of Gaster. You did notice that Chief had gone almost completely rigid as he grinded his teeth together.

 

“UM… DOCTOR GASTER?” The short skeleton timidly tugged on the doctor’s lab coat, trying to get his attention.

 

Gaster looked down, a gentle smile on his face. “Yes, little one?”

 

“UM… WILL… WILL THE TESTS HURT?”

 

The doctor knelt down to Sweets’ level, the kindness in his eyes causing the other skeletons to ease slightly. “Of course not. They are simple magic analysis tests. They will not be painful in the slightest.”

 

Sweets fumbled with the extra cloth of his bandanna, “FOR… FOR SCIENCE?”

 

Gaster let out a soft chuckle, placing a large hand on the skeleton’s shoulder. “Yes, for science.”

 

Sweets pumped his fists in the air, determination blazing in his blue eyes, “FOR SCIENCE!!!”

 

You couldn’t contain it any longer. You swept the little skeleton off the ground, hugging him tightly. Gosh, he was just so cute! “Aw, what a hero!” You nuzzled your face into his cheekbone, earning you a happy giggle from the little blueberry. “Such a brave skeleton!”

 

“OF COURSE!” He tried to strike some kind of pose, but it was almost impossible while you coddled him, “I, THE MAGNIFICENT SWEETS-SANS, AM QUITE MAGNIFICENT! MWEH HEH HEH!”

 

You felt a tap on your shoulder. “Ms. (Name), may I speak to you over here for a moment?”

 

You felt your face flush as Gaster waited for your answer. “Oh, yeah, sure.” You placed Sweets back on the ground and followed the doctor to where you were just out of earshot.

 

“Yes, sir?”

 

Gaster said nothing as he pulled out a check from his pocket and handed it to you. You eyed the check for a moment before casting a questioning look at him.

 

“Um, what is this for?”

 

Gaster gave you a kind smile, “This is for you. There is no remote estimate as to when we will be able to return our new friends back to their home. During their stay, I have deemed it best that they be under your charge. I… I trust that should not be asking too much of you?”

 

You blinked owlishly, looking back down to the check in your hands. “O-Oh! Oh, wow, that’s… That’s a lot of money… Are you sure you put the decimal in the right place??”

 

The doctor gave you a smooth chuckle, “There is no mistake, my dear. Consider the rest as a thank you. For this,” he motioned to the skeletons that were currently all inspecting Sweets’ drawing, “And for making my boys so happy.”

 

“U-Um…”

 

“Papyrus and Sans are very thankful to have someone like you in their lives. For that, I am eternally grateful to you.” He placed a hand on your shoulder, squeezing it gently. “They deserve to be happy.”

 

“Oh, my,” you could feel your face flushing a deep red, “Well, thank you, Doctor…”

 

“You may take the rest of the day to make the proper preparations, and you may take Sans with you if you wish.” He started to lead you back to the group, you were still slightly in a daze, “I’ve contacted housing as well. You now have the apartments both across and next to yours to use at your leisure.”

 

“Wow… Really?”

 

“Yes, and if there is anything else that you may need, please don’t hesitate to contact me.” He pulled out a card from his pocket and handed it to you. There was a number on it, and you could only assume that it was his personal phone number.

 

“Thank you, Doctor… I’ll definitely let you know!” You gave him a bright smile as he exited the lab.

 

“sooo, what’d he wanna talk about?” Sans asked, appearing next to you.

 

“Well, you guys have your own places now!” You felt all giddy inside. How were you ever even scared of Gaster in the first place?! “They’re right next to mine, so that’s good.”

 

Sans didn’t seem to think that was very good, but he kept his mouth shut.

 

“Anyway,” you smiled and grabbed your keys from the desk, “Who wants to go shopping?”

 

This should be fun!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come and join me on tumblr! <3
> 
> http://queenbritkiir.tumblr.com/


	6. In Which You and Ace Have A Moment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You decide to take the skeleboys shopping. Nothing could go wrong right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh gosh, sorry for the wait! I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, as we get to look a little deeper into the mind of Ace!

It didn’t take long for you to go and retrieve your car, heading over to pick up the skeletons from the lab. You made a face, remembering that you really hadn’t had the chance to clean your car. It wasn’t terribly dirty, but for some unknown reason there were clothes in the backseat and a random book in your passenger seat.

 

You shrugged, just deciding to throw the clothes and book into the trunk, no doubt to be forgotten for months. Oh well.

 

When you pulled up to the front of the laboratory, you couldn’t help put let out a little laugh. Sans, Ace, and Chief were all just waiting patiently out front, like normal people. Sweets, on the other hand, was bounding around, large blue stars in his eyes.

 

“WE GET TO GO TO THE MAGICAL SHOPPING MALL! SO MANY STORES IN ONE LOCATION! THIS IS A WONDERFUL OPPORTUNITY!” He pumped his little gloved fists in the air. “I WANT TO VISIT THEM ALL!”

 

You smiled as you exited your car, leaving the keys in the ignition and the car running. “I don’t know if we can visit them all in one day, sweetie.” Upon your return, Sweets wasted no time in clinging to you, a bright smile on his face.

 

“THEN WE SHALL TAKE SEVERAL TRIPS TO THE MAGICAL SHOPPING MALL!”

 

You giggled, “Sure, Sweets. Alright guys, hop in.”

 

Chief and Sweets obliged, heading for the backseat with no qualms. However…

 

“uh, what do you think you’re doin’, pal?”

 

Ace raised a brow bone at the question that was directed towards him, hand stalling just before he grabbed the handle to the passenger side door. “getting in the car,” he stated, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

 

Sans crossed his arms, “i can see that, but you’re at the wrong door.”

 

“…are you serious? does it matter?”

 

Sans’ gaze hardened, “course it matters.” He stepped closer, sizing up the rather tall skeleton. “best friend privileges, means i get to ride shotgun.”

 

“’ve got longer legs.” Ace sent a glare towards the shorter monster. “means _i_ get to ride shotgun.”

 

Hearing the tail end of this conversation, you stood from buckling Sweets into your backseat. “Are you guys really arguing about who gets to ride up front? What, are you children?”

 

“no, i was just explaining to longlegs that i ride shotgun. always.”

 

“longlegs. exactly. i get to be up front.”

 

“do not!”

 

“do too.”

 

“(Name)!” Sans gestured incredulously at Ace, “can you believe this guy?!”

 

You squinted your eyes. Were they seriously doing this? You let out a slightly frustrated sigh. They were being ridiculous…

 

An idea popped into your head, making you grin. “Actually…”

 

 

A frustrated sigh could be heard from the backseat, “chief, could you move your seat up?”

 

You shared a knowing look with the skeleton seated next to you, who simply answered, “nope.” You could see the slight amusement in Chief’s eyelights, and you felt slightly responsible for it.

 

Your eyes flitted up to the rearview mirror, locking a gaze with an unhappy Ace seated behind Chief. “Don’t worry, Ace. Only about twenty more minutes.”

 

Ace flopped his skull back, letting out an over exaggerated groan. “kill me nowwwww.”

 

An equally grumpy Sans was seated next to him, arms crossed over his chest, “that could be arranged.”

 

“Hey!” You pointed your finger to Sans’ reflection. “No murder-talk in my car, bucko. You two got yourselves into this. Deal with it.”

 

“HUMAN?” Sweets’ little face popped into your view and you couldn’t help but smile.

 

“Yes, Sweets?”

 

“MAY I RIDE THE SHOTGUN ON THE WAY HOME?”

 

A smug smirk crossed your lips as you watched Sans and Ace snap up, expectant looks on their faces. “Of course you can, baby.”

 

The looks of sheer disappointment that crossed their skulls were priceless.

 

 

“Alright!” You pressed the lock button on your keys, your car replying with a small ‘beep beep’. You were honestly pretty excited. You really loved shopping. There was something about it that just… made you feel better. In control. “The mall closes in a few hours, but that should give us plenty of time to get you guys what you need.”

 

You flipped open your wallet, retrieving the appropriate cash from it. A hyperactive Sweets stuck to your side, listing off all of the stores he wanted to visit from a small map he’d gotten as they walked into the large building.

 

“OH! THEY HAVE A STORE FULL OF CARPETS AND RUGS! CAN WE GO TO THE CARPET STORE?! OH GOODNESS, LOOK AT THIS! A TACO SHACK?! A SHACK MADE OF TACOS?!” He tried his best not to rip the map in half out of excitement. “HUMAN!” He tugged on your skirt slightly, an expectant look in his eyes.

 

“Yes, Sweets?” He was really giving you a run for your money today. You couldn’t stop the smile that crossed your lips as you looked down at the hyperactive skeleton currently tugging your skirt. His face was bright with enthusiasm and his eyes were filled with wonder.

 

“MAY WE VISIT THE SHACK OF TACOS?!” He shoved the map up to your eyes, pointing at the little food court in the center of the mall.

 

You turned and cast a look to your other companions. No one seemed to have a problem with it, so you just shrugged, “Well, I don’t see why not. We haven’t had lunch yet-,”

 

“HUZZAH!”

 

 

“THESE… THESE TACOS…” Large blue stars filled Sweets’ eye sockets as he started on his fourth taco. “THEY ARE THE BEST TACOS I HAVE EVER HAD!”

 

You let out a soft giggle as you sipped on your soda, long finished with your meal. Right now you and your skeleton posse were just sitting in the food court before getting started on your shopping spree. Flicking your eyes around, you were slightly surprised at how packed the building was.

 

This specific mall was actually pretty run down just a few years ago. Quite a few of the businesses had closed down, leaving the remaining ones to suffer at the hands of online shopping. However, ever since monsterkind had integrated with humankind, the mall had gotten quite the makeover. Makeover meaning that a certain monster celebrity had completely revamped the mall in his image. What was his name again? Megatron? No, that was a Transformer… Metatron? Wait, that was an angel from some supernatural show…

 

You physically shrugged. If you couldn’t remember his name, he obviously wasn’t that important. You were thankful to him, though, whoever he was. As you looked around, you saw several groups of humans and monsters, all shopping, eating, and chatting together.

 

You figured most of the humans that didn’t fancy monsters would stray from places like this. Well, you hoped anyway. That didn’t stop you from getting strange glances every now and then.

 

You placed your now empty (save for the ice) cup on the table, shaking off the wetness the cup left behind on your hand. Your eyes flicked over to a distant looking Sans sitting next to you. He was leaned over the table, eye sockets almost completely closed. Was he seriously about to fall asleep?

 

Flexing your frigid phalanges, a devious smile broke out on your face. Could skeletons feel cold things?

 

Your movements were swift. Your cold fingers wormed their way down onto the back of Sans’ neck where his hood had failed to cover. Almost instantly you were rewarded with an odd squealing sound as he hunched his shoulders up, trying to free himself from your cold grasp.

 

“(Name)! what the hell is wrong with you?!” His eye sockets were wide now, eyelights bright as he tugged his hood closer to his body. “you coulda given me a heart attack!”

 

You snorted, gathering up the empty food wrappers and cups. “You don’t have a heart, bonehead.”

 

You heard a deep snicker from Ace, who was seated on the opposite side of you. “ _icy_ she got you pretty good, boss.”

 

Sans’ face turned a light blue as he mumbled out a string of silent curses.

 

“aw, c’mon, no need to be so _frigid_. was just a joke.”

 

Sans let out an aggravated groan. Jokes were **his** thing, dammit.

 

“now just giving the _cold shoulder_ is rude, boss.”

 

Your eyebrows shot up as the last pun didn’t come from Ace. Chief had a smug smile on his face, golden tooth glinting in the light. You couldn’t stop the small snort followed by laughter as you stood, arms full of trash, “That was pretty good, Chief!” The golden-toothed skeleton flushed slightly and avoided your gaze. He wasn’t used to being complemented.

 

“NO, IT WAS TERRIBLE.” Sweets crossed his arms, obviously displeased at the punnery happening before him. His grumpy demeanor changed as you leaned down and pressed a soft peck to his temple.

 

“C’mon, Hero. Let’s go get you some clothes, maybe we could visit a toy store on the way out.”

 

Sweets instantly jumped up from his seat, as if your little kiss completely rejuvenated him, and cheered as he followed you. You weren’t aware of the incredibly envious looks Sweets was getting from other members of your group.

 

 

You pursed your lips as you placed what seemed like the hundredth article of clothing back onto the rack. This was getting rather annoying, and not just to you.

 

Finding clothes for Chief and Sweets proved to be quite simple, and you were incredibly thankful that Sans had agreed to join you on this little trip. He knew where to shop for his size.

 

Finding clothes for Ace, however, was proving to be rather difficult. Everything you found was the right length, but too wide in the hip(bone) area. Or it would fit him just right around the hips, but then it would be far too short on him. Same thing with jackets or shirts. If it fit right one way, it was too small or too short the other.

 

Ace let out a huff as he walked away from yet another rack of clothes, hands stuffed deep into his jean pockets.

 

“I know they make clothes for people your height,” you puffed out your cheeks, “How do people like Gaster get clothes? That guy is huge…” You crossed your arms, thinking of any other store in the mall that could suit (ha) your needs.

 

Ace came to a stop next to you, raising a brow bone at the odd expression you were making. He lifted a hand and squeezed the air out of your cheeks with a thumb and index finger, your face turning a bright pink at the funny sound your mouth made. “whatcha thinkin’, cutie?”

 

You waved his hand away from your face, “I’m just trying to figure out where we could get you some clothes… You have such an odd body type.”

 

“i’m a skeleton. i don’t have a body type.”

 

“You know what I mean!” You stuffed your hands into your blazer pockets, your left hand jumping slightly when you touched something inside. Retrieving the object, you recognized it as the card that Gaster had given you earlier that morning. “Maybe I should call him?”

 

“call who?”

 

“Doctor Gaster,” you nibbled on your lip, “We could find out where he gets his clothes… Maybe that could help?”

 

Ace went slightly rigid at the mention of the doctor, but did his best to hide it from you. He shoved his hands a little father into his pockets, as if he was ashamed of the holes in his palms.

 

You had already dug your phone from your bag, your thumb currently typing in the numbers neatly written on the card. “Well, it’s worth a try…”

 

As you busied yourself with the phone call, Ace regrettably let himself get lost in his thoughts. His gaze hovered over a hand that he pulled out of his pocket, hardening when it landed on the holes in his palms. It was a constant reminder of who and what he was.

 

A true monster.

 

Monsters were monsters. That was understood. They were made of magic, each one different in their own way. But they were supposed to be like that. That’s how they were created.

 

He was a mistake. A dupe. A mixture of two monsters by some unexplained accident. He wasn’t something that was supposed to exist. For the longest time, he tried to find a way to get back to who he really was… And in doing so, he wouldn’t be himself anymore. He would just fade out of the realm of existence.

 

He’d be Gaster and Sans separately again.

 

He’d often wondered what would happen to this consciousness that he had if he’d gone back. When he’d reverse what had happened, would he remember anything? Would he still-

 

“Alright!”

 

He blinked, clenching his hand into a fist. You half-skipped over to him, a bright smile on your face as you dropped your phone back into your bag.

 

“Doctor Gaster said there should be a place called Muffet’s Boutique here.” You let out a little chuckle. “It’s funny that he goes to a boutique, but, hey, I’m not gonna judge.”

 

Ace could only give you a smile and a simple, “sounds good, cutie.”

 

Something seemed… off with Ace. You raised a brow at him, but chose not to push it. “Well, I’m gonna go tell the guys that we’re going to head over to Muffet’s, and I’m gonna have to give them some money anyways. Be right back.”

 

Ace nodded and watched you walk away. That familiar twisting in his chest caused him to jolt slightly and he raised a hand to cover his sternum. He was still Sans, he knew that for a fact. He could see clearly how the other skeletons’ souls reacted when you were around, and he knew that he was no exception. They flared up and flickered brightly when they were around you, and when you walked away they yearned to bring you back.

 

He felt like a sham, though. He wasn’t what you had come to think of him. He wasn’t the skeleton that you associated him with, and he only reason he was even here being because of the similarities in his magic.

 

“Call me when you guys are done,” your voice reached him, bringing him out of his slight self-hate again, “And stay together!” When you reached him again, he noticed the small smile you gave him was slightly forced. “Hey, you ready?”

 

Guilt. Guilt is what he was feeling right now. _He_ shouldn’t be here. _Sans,_ the real Sans, that’s who deserved to be here. He could feel his soul wretch and twist knowing full well that it was the skeleton that made up half of his being-

 

“Ace?”

 

Ace quickly shoved his hand back into his pocket, “let’s get goin’.”

 

“Wha- Hey!” He’d already started walking out of the store, leaving you to rush after him. You turned and pointed an accusing finger at Sans. “STAY TOGETHER!”

 

“yes, ma’am!” You smiled at the lazy salute Sans had sent your way before turning to follow the tallest skeleton.

 

It wasn’t hard to find Ace, as he was obviously rather tall. You did your best to shove your way through the crowd of people, uttering a few apologies as you did so. “Ace!” You’d finally reached him, slowing to a walk by his side. “Hey, what was up with that?”

 

He only cast you a look out of the corner of his eye socket, “whaddya mean?”

 

You creased your brow slightly, “You leaving me like that.”

 

“thought we were going to this boutique?”

 

“Well, we are…” You puffed out your cheeks, looking away from him as you walked forward. “But guess what?”

 

“hm?”

 

“We’re going the wrong way.”

 

He stilled in mid-step and you stopped next to him, an amused little smile on your face. You looped an arm around his, pulling him back the other way.

 

His cheekbones flushed a slight yellow when you muttered out, “You bonehead.”

 

 

The tinkling of a small bell rang out as you pushed open the door. The shop was colored in several different shades of purple, and your eyes didn’t miss the spider webs in the corners. It was very quiet in the store, and part of you wondered if it was even open.

 

“Um, hello?” You moved inside, holding the door open for Ace to follow you.

 

No one came to answer you, so you moved a little farther inside, feeling Ace sticking close to you. You walked up to the counter, placing your hands tentatively on the dark wood.

 

“Hello? Is anyone here..?”

 

A little nudging caused you to look down to your hand and a slight scream caught in your throat. A spider clung to your hand, but it wasn’t a normal looking spider. It was more like… A black fuzzball with legs? A few more had followed it, one holding up a notecard that had a question printed on it.

 

**_‘How may we help you?’_ **

****

Your eyes flitted back from the card to the little spider currently coddling your pinky finger. “Oh, um, well… I’m looking for Muffet?”

 

The spider holding the notecard flipped it over, a new question presented to you.

 

**_‘What would you like done today?’_ **

****

“We need some custom made clothes for my friend here. He’s a, uh, special case.”

 

The spider flipped the notecard again, and you were surprised the words had changed.

 

**_‘One moment, please.’_ **

****

“Okay. Thank you.” The little group of spiders scattered from the desk in a somewhat orderly manner. You raised your hand to your face, smiling at the small spider that was still stuck to you. “Hey there, little guy.” You ran your finger over its soft little body, and you could swear you heard it purr.

 

You looked to your side, your smile faltering a little when your eyes landed on Ace. His smile was gone and his eyes were a little darker than usual. He just stared down at the floor, hands shoved deep into his pockets and shoulders rigid. Man, what was going on with him today? You didn’t like seeing him like this…

 

You took a few awkward shuffles towards him, your shoulder bumping lightly into his arm. He seemed to snap out of something, his yellow eyelights falling on you. He gave you a questioning look to which you just smiled and held up your hands.

 

“Look, isn’t he cute?” The little spider in your hands gave Ace a kind wave.

 

He chuckled, running a finger over the little spider’s body. “yeah..,” his gaze didn’t quite meet yours when he looked up.

 

“Ace?” You creased your brow just a little, shuffling a tad closer. “Are you-,”

 

“Hello, dearies~”

 

You snapped your jaw shut as someone else joined you in the store. Turning your attention to them, your eyes went wide.

 

Standing behind the counter was another monster, and you were suddenly very thankful that you didn’t have a fear of spiders. Because she looked just like one. Or she was one? She had six arms and two pairs of eyes, a single eye in the center of her forehead.

 

“Welcome, welcome!” She moved her arms about with grace that you could only dream of. She gave you a fanged smile as she rounded the counter, coming to a stop in front of you and Ace. She gave a little curtsy, “Hello, I am Muffet, owner of Muffet’s Boutique! How may I help you today?”

 

The little spider in your hands had scampered over to Ace’s and was currently hunkered down in his fuzzy hood, and you were sure that was purring you were hearing. You chuckled, turning your attention back to Muffet, “Hi, well, we needed some help with clothes. My friend here is pretty tall,” you motioned to Ace with a hand, “so it’s proving to be quite a challenge…”

 

Muffet gave you a nod of understanding before circling the tall skeleton. She looked him up and down, getting a little close at some points. You couldn’t help the look of slight discomfort that crossed your face when she ran a delicate hand over his shoulders and down his arm. Ace noticed it but chose not to say anything. For now, at least.

 

The spider lady stopped in front of him, “This shouldn’t be a problem, dear~ Now, what exactly are you needing?”

 

Ace gave you an expectant look, but seeing as how you were kind of distant at the moment, he just let out a chuckle, “just enough for a small wardrobe should be fine.” He leaned closer to Muffet, a sultry look in his eyes, “i have literally _nothing to wear._ ”

 

Muffet’s face flushed a slightly darker purple as she let out a flirtatious giggle, “Well, we will just have to fix that, won’t we? Ahuhu~”

 

Muffet disappeared to the back for a moment, leaving you and Ace in silence. He cast his gaze to you, to which you just crossed your arms and turned away. Giving a soft chuckle, he shuffled close to you. “what’s the matter, cutie?”

 

You puffed out your cheeks, keeping your face turned away from him. “You just can’t be serious ever, can you?”

 

You stiffened when his hands landed on your shoulders and you felt him lean over you slightly. His warm breath tumbled over your neck causing an involuntary shiver to run down your spine. “why, my (Name), is that jealousy in your voice?”

 

A deep red fell over your cheeks as you tried to shrug his hands off of you, “Ace, we’re in public!”

 

“oh? so what if we were in private, then?” You could practically hear his smirk overtake his face as his hands gently travelled down your arms until they reached your hands. His bony fingers tried to worm their way between yours and the feeling of his ribcage against your back caused your heart to lurch.

 

You whipped yourself out of his grasp, face on fire and eyes wide. “You know what I meant!” He only grinned wider at your reaction and you hoped it was anger that made your heart beat so loudly in your ears. You crossed your arms again as you set your lips in a straight line. “Just… Keep your flirting to a minimum, alright?”

 

You didn’t like how you were feeling at this moment. Rigid, hot, and a little sick in the pit of your stomach. Your chest felt weird, too. Like someone punched you right in the center of it. The feeling only intensified when Muffet rejoined the two of you in the parlor.

 

“Alright, dearie,” she came to a stop behind Ace, one of her pairs of arms fixing him so his arms were outstretched, “Just stand still for a moment so I can get your measurements. It shouldn’t take long~”

 

 

Meanwhile, on the other side of the mall…

 

Sans and Chief had exited another clothing store. This one sold sportswear, and Chief had wanted a new pair of sneakers.

 

Sans let out a yawn, “alright, let’s call (Name) and let her know that we’re just about done.” He had already taken his phone from his pocket, pulling up your number.

 

“uh, hey, boss?”

 

“yea?” Sans didn’t look up from his phone, so he didn’t see the worried look that crossed Chief’s face.

 

“uh… where’s the squirt?”

 

Sans blinked, head snapping up.

 

Oh, shit.

 

“he… he wasn’t in the store?”

 

Chief absentmindedly scratched his cheek. “uh, come to think of it… i haven’t seen him for a while…”

 

You were going to murder him.

 

 

You tried your best to ignore the suave words and the flirtatious giggles that filled the shop. Muffet had finished taking Ace’s measurements, sending her little spiders to begin work on his clothes. Now you had to endure the sickening flirting that was going on between the two.

 

Ace was leaned up casually against the wooden counter, one elbow supporting his weight as he flirted with the spider monster on the other side. He knew very well what he was doing, as terrible as it was. When Muffet would look away or close her eyes and giggle, his would flick his gaze over to you. Most of the time he would catch your eye, giving you a wink and a smirk.

 

You just rolled your eyes, pushing yourself back into the sofa you were brooding on. You dug your phone out of your bag, deciding it would be best to occupy yourself. _‘I wonder if the others are done… Couldn’t hurt to check, right?’_

You pulled up the contact you had made for Sans, tapping on the little phone icon. You pressed the phone up to your ear and waited, the ringing doing a good job of taking your attention away from the scene in front of you.

 

**Ring… ring… ring…**

**We’re sorry, but the number you have called is temporarily unavailable. To leave a message-**

You huffed out a breath, ending the call before the automated voice could annoy you any further. Looking up, you noticed that Muffet had disappeared to the back once more and Ace was sauntering over to where you were sitting. He plopped down next to you, leaning back casually into the plush sofa.

 

You could feel his eyes on you, but you prompted to ignore him and that stupid feeling that made a home in your gut. The little spider that had hidden itself in his hood hopped from his shoulder to yours. It skittered up to your neck and snuggled into the hair that fell down around your shoulders. You let out a small giggle, shrugging up your shoulders slightly.

 

Ace just watched as you raised a hand to pet the little spider, and after a moment your eyes met his. You decided to push away that awful feeling you’d had before and let a soft smile cover your lips. “It’s nice to see that you’re feeling better, Ace.”

 

He blinked lazily, “whaddya mean?”

 

You plucked the spider from your shoulder, bringing it in front of you. You nuzzled it softly, causing it to purr again. “You seemed so down earlier… I was worried.”

 

“oh…” Ace cast his gaze down to his lap where his eyes landed on his hands. He clenched a fist, “sorry about that.”

 

Your eyes hovered over him and followed his gaze to his hands as well. You saw the holes in his palms and when you looked back to his face, only then did you really get a good look at the cracks that branched out from his eye sockets.

 

Those two features reminded you of a certain doctor you knew, and you began to wonder what it was like where Ace came from.

 

“tell me, kitten,” you blinked and brought yourself out of your thoughts, stilling when you saw Ace’s eyes on you, “when you look at me, what do you see?”

 

You pursed your lips and considered his question for a moment. “I see…” Training your eyes on the spider in your hands, you thought hard about your answer. What did he want you to say? And why was he asking? You took in a short breath, running your index finger over the body of the little spider.

 

You softened your gaze, “I see Ace. A tall skeleton with yellow eye lights, long legs, and for some reason the inability to keep his jacket closed. I see someone who can appreciate puns just like me, someone who is really laid back and easy to talk to.” You flicked your eyes up to his face, twisted in an emotion you couldn’t describe.

 

He was glaring at his hands that were laid in his lap. As if they had purposefully insulted him. “’s that right?” His words seemed bitter, full of self-hate. You winced. You knew that voice… You’d used it on yourself plenty of times.

 

Placing the little spider on your shoulder, you scooted closer until your thigh was barely touching his. He turned his skull to give you a questioning look. You reached out and placed a hand over one of his, purposefully covering the hole.

 

“When I look at you, I see a friend. I see a pink frilly apron, pancakes, and a terrible pun on a sweater.” You gave him a soft smile. “I see cracks on a skull and holes in hands. I see someone I wasn’t even supposed to meet naturally, but I’m thankful that I did.”

 

His gaze had hardened for a moment when you mentioned the cracks and holes, but softened as you continued to speak.

 

“Sometimes I wonder where this friend came from. What it was like back at his home. Who he was before he was dropped here.” Your hand tightened around his slightly, your fingers brushing against the hole to prove what you meant. “But no matter what this friend could possibly tell me, I still see Ace. Nothing could change that.”

 

Ace’s soul had swelled to a size he never thought it could. He could feel the truth behind your words and it made him so ecstatically happy it actually brought tears to his eye sockets. He struggled to smile and the hand that held yours had begun to tremble slightly.

 

“I won’t force you to tell me anything, Ace,” your smile softened as you ran your thumb over his bony knuckles, “But I want you to know that I’m always here if you need to talk. Rain or shine, day or night.” You lifted a hand to his face to gently wipe away the yellow-tinted tears that had gathered there.

 

Ace wanted to lighten the mood, to make some kind joke or flirt, but all that tumbled out was a broken, “thank you.” _‘thank you for your kind words, for your honesty, for being here.’_

You gave him a nod. About this time Muffet had returned to the parlor, several clothing bags draped over her arms. “Here we go, dearies! I hope that didn’t take too long, ahuhu!”

 

You gave Ace a simple pat on the hand as you stood to meet the spider lady. “Of course not! That was actually pretty fast… How much do I owe you?” You had started flicking through your wallet as you followed her to the counter. The little spider hopped from your shoulder, landing on the counter. It turned and waved it you before skittering off the counter.

 

“That’ll be one thousand gold even, dearie~”

 

You slightly choked on the oxygen you were breathing. Jesus, that was a lot… And you didn’t have any gold! Most monster stores took human currency… “Uh, how much would that be in dollars?”

 

After a few calculations, Muffet gave you a fanged smile, “About two thousand three hundred.”

 

You wept silently as you forked over the appropriate amount. Muffet thanked you for your business, and before she disappeared to the back again she sent Ace a wink and a kiss. Ace didn’t respond with like motions though, just with a simple wave.

 

“Let’s head out,” you dropped the clothing bags on his lap, slightly peeved at the price and Muffet’s behavior.

 

Just as you turned to lead the way out, Ace grabbed your hand and it caused you to stop. You looked over your shoulder and down at him, a questioning look on your face.

 

“thank you, again.” He gave you a smile. Not a smirk, not a grin. A real smile that made your heart leap just slightly.

 

You pushed down the blush you could feel creep up your neck. “Um, well, you’re welcome.” You chuckled and tugged him up off the sofa. “C’mon, we should go find the others.”

 

 

“Sans?”

 

You had just walked out of the boutique and were almost run over by two out of the three other skeletons. Sans looked up at you with worried eyes, and Chief did his best to avoid your face.

 

“hey, heya, hi. we’re, uh, we’re all done. ready to go!” Sans nervously shoved his hands into his pockets.

 

“Great!” You smiled, looking behind them. “Wait, where’s Sweets?”

 

The two shorter skeletons stilled, beads of sweat dotting their foreheads.

 

“Sans… Where’s Sweets?” You placed your hands on your hips, your eyes hardening.

 

“we, uh… we lost him.”

 

“YOU LOST SWEETS?!”

 

Chief sucked in a breath, “we didn’t mean to! we turned around and he was just gone!”

 

“What happened to staying together?!” You ran a hand through your hair, letting out a shaky breath, “Okay, breathe, breathe… It’s fine. It’s fine. We can find him. How long has he been missing?”

 

Sans shrunk down, “about an hour…”

 

You felt like you were going to have a heart attack.

 

Where could he be?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come join me on tumblr! <3
> 
> http://queenbritkiir.tumblr.com/


	7. In Which You Become Mama Bear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> WHERE IS SWEETS??
> 
> Alternate title: In Which Some Goons Get Dunked On

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks all for waiting so patiently for this chapter! I hope you enjoy!
> 
> Also, LOOK! Fanart!
> 
> From this lovely Reader: http://queenbritkiir.tumblr.com/post/144961932300/letsallbecalmchaps-some-sketchy-fanart-of-my
> 
> It made my heart so happy <3

“That’ll be eleven fifty, sir,” the employee behind the counter droned.

 

Sweets held up a one-hundred-dollar bill, “IS THIS ENOUGH?” He was barely tall enough to see over the counter.

 

The employee blinked, “Uh, you don’t know how to use human money, do ya, kid?”

 

The short skeleton only grinned. “NOT IN THE SLIGHTEST, GOOD SIR.”

 

The human teen chuckled, “Well, that’s plenty of money. Actually it’s way more than you need, so you’ll be getting some back.” He took the bill from Sweets’ gloved hand and turned to the register.

 

“REALLY? WHY IS THAT?”

 

A loud ding rang out from the register as the employee turned back to the short monster. “Well, when you give a bill that is worth more than what you’re paying for, you get change. Money left over from your payment.” He leaned over the counter so Sweets could see what he was doing. “Like this, see you gave me one hundred dollars.”

 

“RIGHT.”

 

“You only bought enough things that add up to eleven dollars and fifty cents, right?”

 

Sweets tapped his fingers against the glass counter as he nodded, “YES.”

 

The employee grinned, “So, all we do is take the eleven fifty out of the one hundred dollars you gave me, and you get eighty-eight dollars and fifty cents back.” He then proceeded to count out the money for Sweets to see.

 

“OOOH, THANK YOU, STORE HUMAN!” Sweets gathered the money and stuck it into his pocket before he squinted his eyes at the nametag the employee wore. “CHAD… CHAD! YOU HAVE BEEN MOST HELPFUL!”

 

Chad chuckled as he threw Sweets’ toys into a plastic bag. “Not a problem, little dude. You have a good day, alright?”

 

Sweets nodded as he took his bag from Chad’s hands. “YOU TOO!”

 

Sweets waved goodbye to the human as he happily strolled out of the store. Once he was back out into the main area, not far from the toy shop he had just left, he excitedly retrieved one of the toys from the plastic bag on his arm.

 

“I HOPE SHE LIKES IT- OOMPF!”

 

“Hey, watch it, monster!” A loud voice boomed from above, shaking Sweets in his boots.

 

He looked up at the person he had accidentally bumped into and stumbled back a bit. This guy was tall… “OH! MY APOLOGIES HUMAN! I, THE MAGNIFICENT SWEETS, DID NOT SEE YOU!” He offered a happy smile before he tried to walk around them.

 

“Hold it, freak.” Another human, seemingly to be friends with the first, reached out and snatched Sweets back by the bandanna.

 

“MWEH!” Sweets was thrown back between the two tall sinister looking men.

 

The first man spoke again, sneering down at the short monster. “You got my shoes dirty, you little brat.”

 

Sweets silently looked from the man’s face down to his shoes. They were already pretty beat up… How could he tell if he’d scuffed them or not? “I… I AM TERRIBLY SORRY. I DID NOT MEAN TO-“

 

The second man pulled him up by his bandanna, grimacing into his face. “Well, what’re you gonna do about it?”

 

A few bystanders cast looks in their directions, some filled with pity, some with guilt. But no one stopped to help. Some people didn’t even consider monsters worth the effort.

 

Sweets started to struggle, his bag of toys falling and landing on the ground at the man’s feet. He struggled to keep a smile on his face as he spoke, “UM, WELL, IF I COULD GO AND FIND MY HUMAN, I COULD GET MONEY FROM HER AND-“

 

“Wait, y _our_ human?” The man holding him sneered. “Damned dirty monsters, moving into our world and taking our jobs, now you want our fuckin’ women.”

 

The second man pulled roughly on Sweets’ arm, a loud ‘POP!’ coming from the skeleton’s shoulder causing him to cry out. “Maybe you need to be taught to stick to your own species, monster.”

 

“What’s going on here?” The new voice caused all three to look, Sweets’ eyes going wide.

 

“HUMAN CHAD! HELLO AGAIN!” Sweets struggled to keep tears at bay, one hand cradling his shoulder.

 

Chad swiftly marched up to the two men, his eyes hard and determined. “Is there a problem, sir?”

 

The man holding Sweets just glared at the teen, “What’s it to ya, punk? If you know what’s good for ya, you’d walk away.”

 

Chad crossed his arms, signifying that he wasn’t going anywhere. “I don’t think so, sir. I’m going to have to ask you to release this person and leave the premises.”

 

The second man had let go of Sweets’ arm and was currently scowling down at the confident teen. “Or what, kid?”

 

“I’ll be forced to call the police.”

 

The men started to cackle, and it was such an ugly sound. Sweets’ was tucked under the man’s arm as he started to swiftly walk away, leaving Chad blocked off by his cohort. Sweets started to pound his fists against the man’s side and arm, begging for him to let go.

 

“Hey! Put him down!” Chad started after them, but was flung back as a fist collided with the side of his face. He sputtered back, tripping over his feet and landing on the cold ground.

 

“Now, be a good kid and stay here. This doesn’t concern you.” The man then turned and followed, leaving Chad on the ground, slightly dazed at the recent punch to the face.

 

 

You hadn’t said a word to the skeletons since you’d found out about Sweets’ disappearance. You promptly had turned and began a brisk walk through the streams of people.

 

Sans and Chief stayed far behind you, keeping their eyes peeled for the familiar little monster. They felt guilty… How hard could it be to just keep track of the little guy? Sans didn’t like seeing you this worried or frustrated… That was his job. He could be worried enough for the both of you.

 

“Um, excuse me, have you seen a short skeleton? He’s wearing a blue bandanna and boots.” For what seemed like the thousandth time, you got a no. You let out a shaky sigh and clenched your hands into fists. “Alright, thank you.”

 

You pulled the map out of your pocket, mentally checking off all the places that you’d already looked. Where did Sweets say that he wanted to go? Carpet World, Books ‘n’ Things, The Toy Barrel…

 

“The Toy Barrel! We haven’t checked there yet!” You folded the map and stuffed it back into your pocket, starting off in the direction of the toy store, the rest of your skeleton posse following you.

 

Ace fell behind, walking with the two shorter skeletons. “man, you guys really screwed up, huh?”

 

Chief glared at him, “shut up! it’s not like we lost him on purpose!”

 

Ace chuckled, “still, how do you lose a person?”

 

Chief pulled out a hand and flipped him off, not uttering another word.

 

Sans hurried up to your side, “hey.”

 

“I’m not talking to you right now, but if I were, I would tell you I’m not talking to you.” You kept your eyes forward and your shoulders square.

 

“okay, okay. i totally deserve that. does that mean you’re not listening to me either?”

 

He saw the way your eyes flicked down to him, indicating that you were indeed listening.

 

“good. i’m sorry.”

 

“And?”

 

“i’m a dumb.”

 

“…And?”

 

“and we’ll find him. how much trouble do you think he could possibly get himself into?”

 

Even though you kept walking, Sans could tell you physically relaxed a bit. Your eyes weren’t as hard, and your lips fell from the straight line you held them in. You didn’t say anything though.

 

As you neared the part of the mall that held the toy store, you noticed there were slews of people heading the opposite direction. As you shoved your way through, you picked up bits and pieces of conversation.

 

“Did you see the way that guy just punched that kid?”

 

“I hope he’s alright…”

 

“He was trying to save that little skeleton, but he didn’t stand a chance against those guys.”

 

You felt your heart go cold as there were mentions of the only other little skeleton you could think of. You felt your feet start to move faster and soon you finally broke free of the crowd.

 

Frantically you scanned the area, trying to ignore the sickening feeling in your stomach. Your eyes landed on the toy store you’d been looking for and you rushed over to it.

 

You almost busted the door down as you entered, swiftly walking over to the counter. A teen sat behind it, a bag of ice nursing an already nasty looking bruise. “Excuse me, I’m sorry to bother you, but have you seen a short little skeleton?”

 

It took the teen a moment to realize you were speaking to him. After a few seconds his eyes widened, “Wait, was he wearing a blue scarf?”

 

“Bandanna, but yes! Have you seen him?” You leaned over the counter expectantly, the door behind you opening as the rest of your companions filed in.

 

Chad glanced at the three new skeletons in the store. How many skeleton monsters were there?? “Uh, well, yeah I’ve seen him. He was here about twenty minutes ago…” Chad let out a sigh as he pulled the wrapped ice from his face. “But then two goons started messin’ with him. I tried to help, but as you can see it didn’t go as planned…”

 

Your hands started shaking and you felt an arm wrap around your shoulders. Probably Ace. You didn’t know, you didn’t care to look. “Where… Where did they go? Is he with them??”

 

Chad leaned over and pointed out of the store, “They left heading for the north exit- Hey!”

 

You whipped out of the store faster than anyone could blink, leaving three concerned skeletons in your wake. Ace turned to the human teen before following, “hey, thanks a million.”

 

“Wait!” Chad ducked down behind the counter for a moment, returning with a plastic bag in hand. He held it out to Ace, “He dropped these… I called the cops, but they refuse to show up because it’s a monster related incident.” He looked guilty, avoiding Ace’s gaze, “I’m sorry.”

 

“nah, you did the best you could. thanks.” Ace turned and followed as Sans and Chief exited the store.

 

Chad let out a sigh, “I hope the little dude’s okay…”

 

 

Sans did his best to keep pace with you, although it was proving to be quite a challenge. You were doing your best not to break out into a full sprint and he could see how much you really wanted to. You burst through the doors, your eyes scanning the crowds of people leaving the mall.

 

You looked far to your left, growling as you found nothing.

 

But when you looked to your right, your eyes narrowed as you caught sight of a large, burly man walking away.

 

With your little Sweets tucked up under his arm.

 

“That piece of shit,” you growled, pushing your sleeves up to your elbows.

 

“woah, woah, wait!” Sans reached out and tugged on you, causing you to stop.

 

You turned and glared down at him, “Excuse me?! You just want him to get carried off?”

 

“of course not! but you can’t just run into danger!”

 

Ace sighed as he came to stand on the other side of you, “he’s right. there’s no telling how dangerous those guys are.”

 

You growled, your eyes flicking over to the one skeleton who hadn’t said anything. Chief shrunk down under your gaze, his hands nervously stuffed in his pockets.

 

“Chief. Come on. Now.”

 

He stilled. “eh, what?”

 

You pulled yourself from Sans’ grip, reaching over to grab Chief by the scruff of his hoodie. A bright red covered his face at your new found dominance and he couldn’t bring himself to pull away. You dragged him in the direction of the men who had Sweets, determination in your eyes as you grumbled, “Let’s go kick some ass.”

 

A blissful smile crossed Chief’s face as he had no choice but to follow you, “ma’am, yes, ma’am.”

 

“shit,” Sans breathed out, rushing to follow you.

 

“shit is right.” Ace followed as well, but neither one of them could match your angry marching.

 

 

A fist collided with the short skeleton’s face, sending Sweets down on the dirty ground with a cry. His shoulder still hurt, and now pain filled his face as well. He willed away the tears he could feel building up, doing his best to stay strong.

 

“You’re gonna learn, _monster,_ to stick to your own species,” one of the men spat as he reared a leg back, ready to send a kick to his ribcage.

 

Sweets screwed his eyes shut as he waited for the impact…

 

That never came.

 

A loud battle cry broke through the air followed by the sound of a body colliding into another. Sweets looked up just as you barged in, your shoulder shoving into the man at a crazy force. “YOU MOTHERFUCKER!” you screamed, eyes wide and hair frazzled.

 

Chief wasn’t far behind you as he landed a nice shove into the other man, the human’s breath knocked from his chest as he was shoved to the ground.

 

The first man hurried to scramble to his feet, glaring harshly at you. “What the hell is your problem, lady?!”

 

Your attention was on the shivering skeleton on the ground. Your eyes didn’t miss the scuff marks that were clear on his face and instantly your glare was back on the man, “Did you FUCKING HIT HIM?!”

 

“This has nothin’ to do with you, bitch!” The other man stood as well, but Chief blocked him off from getting to you.

 

“NOTHING TO DO WITH ME, MY ASS!” You cracked your knuckles, taking a threatening step towards your opponent. “You take my friend, PUNCH HIM, and then have the balls to tell me that this has NOTHING TO DO WITH ME?!”

 

By now, Ace and Sans had arrived to the scene. The man blinked, obviously taken off guard at the plethora of skeleton monsters that surrounded him. Ace and Sans stood behind you, the lights in their eyes gone as they stared harshly at the two men.

 

“You’d better get outta here!” The other man spoke up, trying to hide his wavering tone as Chief glared him down. “You won’t like what happens if you don’t!”

 

You glared at him, the look in your eyes deadly, “I’m sorry, I don’t take pussies seriously.”

 

“P-Pussies?! Who the hell you callin’ a pussy, ya cunt?!”

 

In the blink of an eye, your fist collided with the bastard’s nose with a satisfying crack. “JACKASSES LIKE YOU WHO PREY ON OTHERS ARE FUCKING PUSSIES!”

 

The man in front of you seemed to seriously think about whether he should bolt or stay. With another glare, he rushed his cohort off the ground and pulled him away. “That bitch broke my nose! What the fuck!”

 

“We won’t forget this, you little shit!” he called back to you, dragging his shouting partner with him.

 

You violently flipped him off as they retreated. After they were long gone from your sight you could still feel the adrenaline pumping through you. Your breathing was deep and ragged and you could slowly feel the pain seep into your hand from where it collided with the jerk’s face.

 

The skeletons didn’t say anything as they all just stared at you in stunned silence. A small sniffle caused you to whip around, your eyes landing on the still shivering Sweets on the ground. Instantly your demeanor changed from angry and cold to concerned and warm as you rushed over to him.

 

“Hey, hey, Sweets, it’s alright now,” you reached your arms out to him and he quickly tumbled into them, large blue tears welling up in his eye sockets. “Are you alright, sweetie?”

 

He was still shaking against you, but you could feel him nod against your chest. You let out a breath of relief and wrapped your arms tighter around him, “Why did you wander off like that?”

 

When he looked up at you, your heart almost broke. His skull was flushed in a light blue as tears flowed freely from his eyes, and you just couldn’t ignore the part of his cheekbone that showed where the man had hit him. “I-I WENT TO THE TOY STORE… I WANTED TO GET A SURPRISE FOR YOU… I DIDN’T MEAN TO MAKE YOU WORRY!” He let out a violent hiccup. “ARE YOU MAD AT ME?!”

 

Well, now your heart broke. You felt your own eyes sting with tears but willed them away, “Of course not, Sweets. I could never be mad at you.” The littlest skeleton buried his face back into your chest as he cried freely now, blubbering out sorries and other nonsense.

 

You straightened yourself as you stood, bringing the little blueberry up with you. His legs wrapped around your waist as he clung to you, not intending on letting go any time soon. That was fine, you didn’t want to let go either.

 

As you adjusted Sweets against you he let out a little whimper as you accidentally bumped his injured shoulder. You blinked, leaning back to look at him. “Sweets? What’s wrong?” Your look hardened as he tried to avoid your eyes. “Did they hurt you somewhere else?”

 

He sniffled, falling silent when he nodded.

 

You sucked in a breath, feeling your anger bubble up again. “Where?”

 

“THEY PULLED ON MY ARM REALLY HARD… MY SHOULDER HAS BEEN HURTING SINCE THEN…”

 

You felt Ace come to stand next to you, but his attention was on Sweets. He had a hand outstretched to him with a gentle look on his face. “can i look?”

 

Sweets leaned away, his face twisted in slight pain and fear, but said nothing. You rubbed your hand along Sweets’ back and you could feel him physically ease in your hold. “Hey, hey,” you cooed, your voice as soft as you could make it, “It’s alright. Ace just wants to help, okay?”

 

Sweets’ blue eyes looked up to you for confirmation. When you smiled at him he nodded, “OKAY…” You let out a sigh of relief and Sweets outstretched his little arm, wincing visibly when Ace grabbed his wrist and shoved his sleeve up.

 

Ace sucked in a breath through his teeth as he peered up to the littlest skeleton’s shoulder, pity evident on his face.

 

“Ace? What is it?” you asked, trying to keep Sweets as calm as possible.

 

Ace’s iris’ flicked to your face before going back to investigate Sweets’ shoulder. “looks like it’s dislocated.”

 

You made a face, “That’s possible? Like… Without muscle and stuff?”

 

“yeah, it’s possible. our magic acts as the bond to hold our bones together. magic is almost constantly running all over, acting as muscle, nerves, and skin like you have,” he let out a sigh, “so when something like this happens, it’s just as painful.”

 

“Oh…”

 

“yeah, and what do you do with a dislocated shoulder?” The look on Ace’s face was downright painful as he placed a firm grip on Sweets’ shoulder and arm.

 

You felt Sweets instantly tense up, gripping to you tightly with his one arm and legs as the anticipation was killing him. You began shushing him well before Ace quite literally popped Sweets’ arm back into his shoulder blade.

 

Sweets cried out, shoving his face into the crook of your neck. Within the following moments it was well soaked with tears and it pained you to hear him sob into your shoulder. You let out a sigh before turning to Ace. You offered him a small smile, which he returned.

 

“Alright, guys, I think we’ve had enough excitement for one day,” you continued to run your hand up and down Sweets’ back in an attempt to soothe his cries, “Let’s head back, yeah?”

 

There was a unanimous silence which you took as a ‘Hell yes’.

 

 

No one complained when you buckled Sweets into the front seat, pressing a kiss to his temple before you shut the door. The ride home was quiet, but no one really minded that either, seeming to enjoy it rather.

 

You pulled into your parking spot in front of the apartment buildings. After putting it into park and shutting off your car everyone shuffled out except the snoozing skeleton next to you. Sans had moved to the passenger side door, ready to open it when you walked around. “I’ve got it, Sans.”

 

Sans stilled as he heard you speak. You weren’t happy, that much was obvious, but there was something underlying your unhappiness. Sadness? Anger? …Guilt? He couldn’t really tell and as you avoided looking at him he couldn’t decipher it from your face either. You opened the door and gently shook Sweets out of his slumber. “MNH… HUMAN?”

 

You let out a shaky breath, “Hey, sweetie, we’re home.” You reached over and unbuckled him, carefully pulling him out of the seat and up into your arms. He instantly wrapped his arms around your neck, his big eye sockets drooping closed again.

 

You said nothing as you led the rest of your group up to your apartment. A white envelope was taped to your door with your name scripted on it in beautiful handwriting you knew as Gaster’s. You snatched it from the wood before you unlocked and opened your door.

 

The rest of your group filed in, too uncomfortable to break the silence. You placed the dazed Sweets on the sofa, kneeling down to his level as you pulled off his boots. “Here, you relax, okay? I’ll get you something that’ll make you feel all better, then we can head to bed. That sound good?”

 

The sleepy skeleton nodded before he curled up against a large pillow, his eye sockets just barely closed. You stood and promptly marched to your kitchen, avoiding the others as you did so. Ace and Sans shared worried glances at your actions, deciding to steer clear of you for now.

 

Chief, on the other hand, didn’t feel comfortable with just leaving things as they were. He quietly shuffled over to the kitchen where he found you rummaging through your cabinets. Your face was hard and cold but he could tell that you were struggling to hold yourself together.

 

You pulled down a box of Golden Flower Tea along with a tea kettle. Apparently you didn’t feel Chief’s presence because when you turned you jolted as you almost walked right into him. You hissed out a breath, “Jesus, Chief, don’t do that!”

 

The gold toothed skeleton just let out an awkward chuckle, “sorry, didn’t mean ta _rattle your bones_.”

 

You laughed a little despite yourself and Chief liked the fact that he could make you smile. You flipped the tap on as you started to fill the kettle. “Would you like some? It’s really good, Toriel gave it to me when I was sick a few months ago. It also helps when I have… down days.” You pointed to the box on the counter.

 

Chief picked it up, turning it over in his hands. “your toriel sounds nice. hell, your everything sounds nice…” he muttered, leaning against the counter.

 

“What makes you say that?” You cast him a look as you placed the kettle on the burner, leaning against the stove opposite him.

 

Chief’s pupils flicked up to you before looking back down to the box in his hands. “things are just… different. when undyne barged in the other day i literally thought we were all gonna die.”

 

You shrugged, “Yeah, she can be a little brash, but she’s just a big softie once you get to know her.”

 

“naw, that ain’t what i mean,” he tipped his skull down to avoid looking at you, “i seriously thought we were going to die. where i come from, it’s kill or be killed. ain’t no friendship or niceness about it.”

 

You opened your mouth to say something but quickly shut it, not wanting to ruin the fact that the usually stoic skeleton was talking to you out of his own free will. A comfortable silence filled the air as you waited for the water to boil.

 

“are you okay?”

 

The question caught you off guard as you blinked at him. What did he mean?

 

“you seem… real upset.” He placed the box back on the counter and pushed himself off of it. He came to stand in front of you, his hands stuffed in his pockets as he gazed down at the floor. “i’m… ‘m sorry that we lost the squirt at the mall. we shoulda been watchin’ him, and because we weren’t he got hurt for it. so did you.”

 

“What? I didn’t get hurt-,” Your sentence was cut short when Chief tugged your hand up, purple bruises blossoming to the surface of your knuckles. You winced as he ran his thumbs over them, overly sensitive from when you clocked the jackass from earlier.

 

“yea, ya did.” He sighed as he released your hand. “you have every right to be mad, so i can understand that you are.”

 

“Wait, you think I’m mad at you? And Sans?”

 

“well, yeah… why wouldn’t you be?”

 

You let out a sigh, rubbing your neck absentmindedly. “I’m not mad. Not at you guys at least. I’m just,” you thought for a moment, trying to find the right words, “I’m ashamed.”

 

“ashamed? of what? you didn’t do anything!”

 

“I’m ashamed of the human race, Chief.” The kettle behind you started to whistle and you twisted around. “All throughout history, humans have done nothing but been violent to others who are different or who don’t meet their standards as who and what can be accepted.” You flicked the burner off and grabbed the kettle, turning to retrieve enough mugs from the cabinet for everyone.

 

Chief watched you move about, waiting for you to continue talking. “I used to think that it was just the radicals that did so. But today… Seeing Sweets get beat up for just being a monster… I realized it’s not just the radicals. I used to be scared of monsters, too,” he heard a little sniffle come from you, but you refused to look at him, “I would do anything just to avoid confrontation. I was just like them… Until I met Sans and everyone else. But even though I have friends, _family,_ that are monsters it doesn’t change the fact that I acted the way I did.”

 

Chief moved next to you, a tentative hand on your forearm. When he finally got a look at your face he could help the pang he felt in his soul. You were crying. Cheeks flush as tears spilled freely from your eyes and landed on your blouse with little plips. Your lower lip trembled slightly as you started to quake. “S-Sweets didn’t even do anything… H-How could someone just…” you couldn’t even bring yourself to finish your frantic whispering before the sobs came.

 

The skeleton was beside himself. He’d never had to console anyone before… Sure there were those times when his brother was a baby bones, but this was different. You weren’t a baby, and this wasn’t just something he could fix by giving you simple baby things. Or… could he? It would be awkward, considering how much shorter he was than you, but the action should still have the same effect.

 

Without putting much more thought into it he gently guided you to face him. You blinked at him, shaky breaths leaving your lips as he reached up and wrapped his arms around your shoulders in an awkward hug. “it’s okay, hu- (Name),” he mentally cursed his slip up, “i can tell that you’re way better than those sleazebags. you’re… nice. and you care about others way more than you care about yourself.”

 

God, you were a sobbing mess now. Your arms came to wrap around Chief as you clutched onto his hoodie, but couldn’t bring yourself to say anything.

 

After a few more moments of silence, he pulled back from you, a smile that he hoped came off as comforting beaming up at you. “you good now?”

 

You sniffled, giving a weak laugh, “Yeah, I’m good.”

 

You finished preparing the Golden Flower Tea, bringing out a mug for everyone. Sans noticed your slightly puffy eyes and wanted to question you about it, but when you genuinely smiled at him he decided against it.

 

You moved to sit next to the now snoozing Sweets, placing the mugs of tea on the coffee table. You gently shook him, saying his name softly to wake him. He looked up at you, his eye sockets tired and weary.

 

“Here, drink this. It should make you feel all better.” You handed him the warm mug, helping him lean up as he started to sip on it. “Good?”

 

Sweets nodded as he leaned against you, the mug still up to his mouth as he seemed to bask in the warmth it gave off. You raised your own mug to your lips, sipping at the hot beverage. You flicked your eyes up and they met with concerned yellow ones.

 

Ace sat opposite you on the loveseat with his mug set on his jean clad femur. You smiled at him, silently assuring him that you were okay. “I think it’d be best that we deal with the whole apartment thing tomorrow,” you spoke up, your fingers absentmindedly trailing up and down Sweets’ arm, “What do you guys think?”

 

You barely noticed that Sans had come to sit next to you, already finished with his own tea. “are you sure about that?” he mumbled.

 

“One hundred percent positive.” You could already feel sleep trying to grab at you, the tea doing a wonderful job at easing your nerves. “We’ll deal with that tomorrow morning.”

 

Sans nodded, figuring you weren’t really in the mood to argue with him. Which was fine. He didn’t want to argue with you either. “alright. ‘m gonna head on home. you ok?”

 

“Yeah, I’ll be alright. Just a little frazzled from today is all,” you gave him a calm smile as you adjusted the now sleeping skeleton against you. “Tell Paps I said hey, alright?”

 

He smiled at you, “no prob, bob. see ya tomorrow.” With that, he blipped out of your apartment.

 

You sighed, leaning back into the couch. You felt the cushion next to you dip slightly and when you looked over you were met with an equally sleepy looking Chief. It didn’t take long for the two of you to slip away into blissful sleep.

 

Ace let out a strained sigh as he stood, gathering the now empty mugs from the table. He cast one more gaze to your sleeping form as he tried to ignore that pleasant twisting in his chest.

 

You looked so peaceful when you slept, even with your tear streaked cheeks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Long Live Chad.
> 
>  
> 
> I has tumblr! Come hang out with me!
> 
> http://queenbritkiir.tumblr.com/


	8. In Which Sweets Thinks About Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What is love?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Baby don't hurt me.
> 
>  
> 
> I just wanna say thank you guys for all the love <3 it means soooooooo much

You woke up, slowly and peacefully. A slight pressure rested behind your eyes but it wasn’t entirely painful, just a bit uncomfortable. A soft breath pressed through your dry parted lips as you stirred, your heavy comforter twisting against your legs.

 

Wait… When had you gotten into bed?

 

You creased your brow as you partially opened your eyes, glancing around to deduce that you were indeed in your own bedroom. Bright sunlight spilled in from your window, streaking across the wooden floors in bright streams. Everything was a bit blurry at the moment, your hand beginning to blindly search for your glasses.

 

Once you found the familiar frames on your bedside table, you leaned up and slipped them on your face. You just sat there for a moment, running a hand through your messy and slightly frizzy hair. You looked down and noticed you were still dressed in your clothes from yesterday. Your skirt was twisted around your thighs and your blouse sat lopsided on your shoulder, your blazer tossed on the chair next to your desk.

 

You swung your legs over the side of the bed and stood, trying your best to right your wrinkled clothing and once you deemed yourself appropriate enough you moved to your door. You peeked out, finding your apartment eerily quiet. Felix popped his head around the corner, giving you a questioning look before trotting over to you.

 

Scooping up the orange feline you let out a sigh before padding down the hallway. Where was everyone? How late was it?

 

“mornin’, cutie.”

 

You jumped slightly as you turned towards your living room, finding a sleepy looking Ace sprawled out on the loveseat. He raised his hands to his face and rubbed the remaining sleep away from his eye sockets as you stood awkwardly in the hallway, a comfortable Felix in your arms.

 

“Hey, uh… Where is everyone?” Your voice was slightly scratchy from sleep and you felt a little heavy. You felt like you didn’t get incredible sleep.

 

Ace stretched his arms over his head and you realized that his signature leather jacket was missing, leaving him in just his dark jeans with a blanket hanging off of his long legs. He relaxed against the arm of the couch, holding a hand out as he beckoned the cat in your arms, “they went ahead to the lab a few hours ago-,”

 

“H-Hours?!” Felix fled from your arms at your outburst. Your eyes were wide as horror filled your face. “What time is it?! Oh, god, I’m so late! Why didn’t my alarm go off?!”

 

“i turned it off,” Ace replied, running a hand over the orange cat that hopped up onto the loveseat with him.

 

“You WHAT?!” You began running frazzled fingers through your knotted locks as you silently began to freak out. Maybe if you skipped a shower and just changed your clothes, you could make it to the lab in about fifteen minutes you could just put a hat on to hide the fact that your hair was a mess, and maybe a spritz of perfume could hide the fact that you kind of stunk but you really needed to get to work oh god Sans was going to be so mad and now that Gaster was around it would be even worse and-

 

A pair of hands slapped down on your shoulders and you stilled, blinking as you looked up at the tall skeleton in front of you. “hey, calm down… sweets told me to let you sleep in. he told me to stay and wait for you to get up on your own.”

 

Lowering your shaking hands, you just stared at him, “He… What? Why?”

 

“he wanted you to get some rest. you looked really frazzled when we got back yesterday…”

 

“I’m… I wasn’t the one who almost got abducted yesterday!” You huffed, feeling a little belittled. Sweets was the one who received a brunt of the attention, he should have been here relaxing… “I’m fine, I didn’t need to sleep in or anything…”

 

“so you’re gonna tell sweets he was wrong in letting you rest?” Ace tsk’ed at you, looping his thumbs into his belt loops. “he’s gonna be real heartbroken ‘bout that.”

 

“No, I’m not going to tell him that, I just,” you crossed your arms stubbornly, “I didn’t need any extra rest or anything.”

 

Ace’s gaze rested on the bruises that were darkening against your knuckles, purple and red blossoming painfully across your hand. He pitied it but planted a lazy smile on his face, “i dunno, being that badass woulda taken a lot outta me.”

 

“B-Bad… Wha?” You followed his gaze down to your hand, flushing slightly as you remembered landing a good hit on Sweets’ attacker. “Oh, well… I just… They were assholes, y’know?”

 

“mmh, that they were.” Ace’s gaze rose back up to your face and he took in the slight pride that crossed it. Of course you were proud of yourself, you kicked ass yesterday! His smile softened when your eyes flicked up to his.

 

You snorted softly, “Why are you just staring at me like that?”

 

“cuz i can. what, you gonna punch me, too?”

 

You narrowed your eyes playfully at him, “I will if I need to. Sometimes you can’t keep your hands to yourself, mister.”

 

Ace let out a soft chuckle, “well, joke’s on you cuz now i know how to get you to touch me.”

 

“What? Ew, how did we even get on this topic?” You huffed, turning to walk back to your room. “I’m going to take a shower. And put on some clothes, will ya?”

 

Ace watched as you disappeared behind your closed door, sighing softly as he plopped down on the sofa.

 

 

 

“YEAH, IT WAS AWESOME! SHE CAME IN AND KNOCKED ONE HUMAN DOWN, AND SIR CHIEF WAS RIGHT BEHIND HER!”

 

“O-Oh, my… T-That sounds i-intense!” Alphys let out a little laugh at the highly animated skeleton in front of her. Sweets was currently sitting on an observation table in one of the labs on the same hall as Sans’, his boot clad feet swinging happily as Alphys dug through her equipment bag. “A-And then w-what happened?”

 

“AND THEN THE HUMANS WEREN’T BEING VERY NICE TO HER. THEY WERE SHOUTING SUCH MEAN THINGS, BAD NAMES, TOO! IT JUST MADE (NAME) EVEN ANGRIER! HER SOUL WAS GOING CRAZY!”

 

Alphys nodded, pulling out a clipboard along with a measuring tape, a syringe, and a vial. She carefully set all the objects on the little table next to her before she settled the clipboard into her lap. “T-That sounds scary. W-What happened then?”

 

Alphys knew it would be best to keep Sweets in conversation as she began to take his measurements. It would make the whole process just a little bit easier. She stood behind him and directed him to sit up a little straighter, squaring his shoulders so she could get a proper measurement with the measuring tape.

 

“WELL, AFTER THEY SAID THE MEAN THINGS, SHE PUNCHED ONE OF THEM RIGHT IN THE FACE!” To add to his story, Sweets punched a fist into his gloved hand with a happy grin. “IT WAS SO COOL!”

 

“It s-sounds cool! N-Now, can y-you stand up? I h-have to get y-your height.”

 

Sweets slipped off the table and stood as straight as possible while the yellow monster took his measurement from his feet to the top of his skull. Alphys turned to write the numbers on the paper clipped to the clipboard, not noticing Sweets’ grin faltering a little. “SHE… SHE WASN’T HAPPY WHEN WE GOT HOME, THOUGH.”

 

Alphys blinked and looked over her shoulder to him, “W-What do you m-mean?”

 

Sweets raised his hands and fumbled with his bandanna, his light blue eyes avoiding Alphys’. “HER SOUL WAS SAD. I CAN TELL. SHE WAS REALLY UPSET AND I THOUGHT IT WAS BECAUSE OF ME. IT WAS ALL MY FAULT, REALLY… I SHOULDN’T HAVE WANDERED OFF YESTERDAY.”

 

Alphys motioned for him to get back onto the table and he did so. Once he was sitting, he placed his hands in his lap. “I… I DON’T LIKE IT WHEN SHE GETS SAD, DOCTOR ALPHYS.”

 

The yellow monster gave him a little smile, placing a clawed hand on his shoulder. “T-That’s normal, Sweets. N-No one l-likes to see s-someone they l-l-love to be s-sad.”

 

Sweets blinked at her, “LOVE?”

 

She nodded, “T-That’s why I t-think she a-a-acted the way s-she did. S-She lo-loves you, a-and when y-you love someone, y-you want to p-protect them a-as much as possible.”

 

A soft flush painted Sweets’ cheekbones as he took in Alphys’ words. You… loved him? He thought back to his dating books back home. The word ‘love’ was quite frequent in them, and it was used in several different contexts. To woo someone, you would engage in something they ‘loved’. Taking them to a movie, cooking them dinner, giving them flowers. And then when you cared a lot about a person, you say that you ‘love’ them. But then when you wanted to be around that person all the time, you would be ‘in love’ with them. Then there was something about ‘making love’? Papy wouldn’t let him read that part.

 

And then he thought about what you did when you loved someone. He read that you were supposed to be around them all the time. He’d been around you every moment since he got here… And then you were supposed to hug them, which he did almost constantly. He also read that when you really loved someone, you could kiss them… His face flushed almost completely. You kissed him yesterday! You must love him!

 

Love, in love, loved, making love… Sweets creased his brow slightly. Why is it that you could use that word in so many different ways? Did it all mean the same thing? What kind of ‘love’ did you have for him? What kind did he have for you?

 

“Sans! Hey, I’m sooooooo sorry I’m so late!”

 

Sweets perked up as your voice floated out in the hall and he saw you dart past the door. Alphys turned to say something to him, but before she could utter a word he had already slipped off the table and rushed to the door. “HUMAN!”

 

You were hurrying down the hall to your own lab, trying to get to Sans to explain your tardiness when Sweets hurried out behind you. He darted out into the hall and skittered up to you, his arms wrapping around your waist as he grinned up at you. You stumbled a bit, coming to a full stop and looked down at him. “Oh, hey, Sweets!” You reached down and pulled him into a tight hug, swinging him slightly as his feet left the ground.

 

Sweets could feel his soul swell just a bit and his hands grow a little sweaty. A giddy feeling rose in his nonexistent gut as you smothered him in hugs. He felt a little hyper but sluggish at the same time, and it confused him. Darn, he really needed his books right now! He didn’t remember any of this!

 

“Oh, hey, Alphys!” Your voice brought him out of his thoughts as you looked over his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around your neck to steady himself and looked over as well.

 

“H-Hey, (Name). S-Sweets was just t-telling me a-about your little m-mishap at the m-mall,” she shuffled up to you, fixing her glasses up onto her snout, “A-Are you o-okay?”

 

You let out a little chuckle, “Yeah, I’m fine. My hand hurts a bit, but that guy deserved it! Hurting Sweets like that.” You hugged him closer to you, completely missing his bright blue cheekbones. The little skeleton hunkered down into his bandanna, suddenly feeling quite embarrassed.

 

Alphys smiled up at you, clapping her clawed hands together. “W-Well, I’m j-just happy you’re a-alright! S-Sweets, c-can we finish o-our t-tests?”

 

You raised your brow. Starting the tests already? Wow, Gaster really didn’t want to waste any time, huh? You felt a light poke on your shoulder and looked down to Sweets. “Hmm?”

 

“CAN… CAN YOU BE IN THE ROOM WITH ME?”

 

You pursed your lips, “Aw, but you were doin’ just fine without me before.”

 

“I KNOW… BUT… I WOULD JUST…” He floundered his words a bit, casting his look away from you.

 

You raised a brow. Sweets was acting… Off today. It must have been from yesterday. You couldn’t totally blame him. You’d still be pretty freaked out, too! You huffed out a little laugh before smiling at him, “Sure, sweetie. I’ll be right there with you. Just let me go talk to Sans really quick, okay?”

 

Sweets nodded as you set him back down onto his feet, flushing again as you pressed a light kiss to his forehead. Another chuckle was heard from behind you as Ace joined the group, “that ain’t fair. we all can’t be cute enough for kisses.”

 

You straightened at narrowed your eyes at the tall skeleton, “I dunno, Chief is pretty cute. Sans, too. Maybe they’d like one.” With that, you turned and marched towards your lab, leaving Ace out in the hall with Sweets and Alphys.

 

“one day,” he cast a longing look over to Alphys, who looked slightly uncomfortable. Ace shoved his hands into his pockets, heaving a sigh, “one day.”

 

Sweets cast Ace an odd look. Why didn’t you give anyone else kisses? Were they a special thing, or did you just like kissing him? What did the kisses mean? Sweets furrowed his brow as he crossed his arms. He had so many questions, so many things he didn’t understand.

 

“A-Alright, Sweets, l-let’s wait for (N-Name) in t-the observation r-room, okay?” Alphys placed a hand on the little skeleton’s shoulder and guided him back to the room he had darted out of. Sweets nodded and obeyed without issue, casting one more glance to the tall skeleton left in the hallway.

 

 

 

“Sansy-pants!” You sang as you neared the skeleton currently hunkered over his work desk. He jolted slightly, your voice obviously catching him off guard.

 

“sansy-pants? at’sa new one.” He offered you a light chuckle as he looked up from the circuit board he’d been trying to piece back together. His glasses were slightly crooked and when he made no move to adjust them, you did so yourself.

 

“Yeah, well, it kinda just rolled off my tongue.” You leaned back from fixing his glasses, flashing him a winning smile. “There, perfect.”

 

“pssh, ‘m always perfect.”

 

You rolled your eyes, “Right, right. How could I forget?” You leaned over him, eyes scanning the table and the miscellaneous parts that littered the surface. “Is that the mainframe?”

 

Sans swiveled his chair around to face you, “nah, it’s actually part of the locator. it totally exploded inside the casing, so now i’m tryin’ ta piece it back together.”

 

“Is it salvageable?” You stuffed your hands into your pockets as you leaned against the table. “It would really suck if we had to rebuild it. Those materials weren’t cheap…”

 

“i don’t really know… maybe i could solder it back together, but that’s only if all the pieces are here.”

 

You nodded as you silently studied Sans’ face, and only then did you realize how tired he looked. The rings under his sockets were darker than usual and his grin seemed a little strained. You felt terrible about that, and the fact that you were allowed to sleep in when you’ve done virtually nothing made you feel even worse.

 

“could i try?”

 

You blinked and turned to the voice behind you. Chief stood a few feet away with his hands loosely hanging in his pockets, but his gaze was firm as it flicked between you and Sans.

 

“uh, sure? knock yourself out, pal,” Sans stood from his chair and offered it to his doppelganger who took it silently.

 

The two of you stood there and watched him for a moment, intrigued at his sudden interest in fixing the locator board. Chief began to move a few of the pieces around, mumbling to himself as he rotated two of them to get them to fit flush together.

 

You and Sans shared an impressed look and you crossed your arms, leaning ever closer. Within the next few moments he had already completed maybe a sixth of the circuit board. The portion he'd already reassembled looked as if it had never even been broken!

 

“Wow… You’re awesome, Chief,” you mused, leaning over more but still giving him his space.

 

Chief did his best to bite down a grin, hiding it as he hunkered over the desk more. “do you have a soldering gun?”

 

“oh, yeah, it should be in the next room.” He looked to you and gave you a wink, “be right back.”

 

You rolled your eyes playfully as he blipped out of the room. You pulled a chair over to sit next to Chief. “Do you mind?”

 

He didn’t cast but a glance to you before responding. “no, it’s alright.”

 

You smiled and leaned forward onto your hands, watching him work swiftly. He’d just completed the entire top part of the board right in front of you! “Woah… That’s so neat! How’d you do it so fast?”

 

He stopped for a moment, his red irises training hard on the remaining pieces. “well, back home we’d always find a bunch of broken things in the dump. i was almost always alone after boss became captain of the royal guard-,”

 

“’Boss’?”

 

“that’s what papyrus makes me call him. he’s pretty brash and takes his status real serious.” You nodded, watching his face as he continued. “when we were small bones we’d find all kinds of cool stuff that washed down from the surface. most of it was broken though.” He shrugged as he fumbled with a piece of the board in his hands. “me and boss used to put things back together, make ‘em work even better than before. it was like… our thing, i ‘spose.”

 

“Well, that’s nice,” you smiled, but when Chief’s face fell slightly you furrowed your brow.

 

“yea, it was. then he became captain and then i hardly ever saw him.” He tossed the piece back onto the table and sat back into his chair. “and when i did, he just yelled at me. sometimes yellin’ wasn’t enough. so i did my best to just avoid him, and continued fixin’ things alone.”

 

“Wait, you mean… When he didn’t yell, he-,” you cut yourself off, too afraid to venture forth. Did… Did his Papyrus hit him? Abuse him?! You felt a little fire ignite in your gut as Chief nodded. It was just a simple tip of his chin, but that little movement really put things into perspective for you.

 

Chief avoided looking at you, keeping his hardened gaze on the circuit board in front of him. You scooted your chair closer to him and he let out a sigh. “Aw, Chief, I’m sorry… I didn’t know.”

 

“nah, it’s,” he took in a shaky breath, “it’s fine. ‘m fine.” You could tell he really wasn’t, and when you placed a hand on his arm he jumped slightly.

 

“Well, for the time being, you don’t have to worry about any of that,” you smiled and ran your thumb over the fabric of his sleeve, “You really helped me out yesterday, you know.”

 

A soft red branched out underneath his eye sockets and he hoped to the stars you didn’t see. “what? nah, i just… did what i used to do for boss. huggin’ n stuff always made him feel better.”

 

You gently wrapped your arms around him in an awkward side-hug, and the soft red only intensified as you pulled him into you. You were soft and warm and the way you smelled caused him to physically relax into your embrace. You hummed softly, “You’re right, hugs do make things better.” Chief closed his sockets as your soft words lulled him. You were just so… nice. You hardly even knew him but you were so kind and sweet to him. What had he done to deserve this from anyone?

 

“eh, am i interrupting anything?”

 

A soft chuckle left you as you craned your head back and looked up at Ace. “What? Do you wanna hug, too?”

 

“hell yeah!” Ace admittedly got a little too excited at your offer, holding his arms out as you stood. “lay it on me, kitten.”

 

“Alright, I’ll go get Sweets. He gives the best hugs.” You happily skipped away, casting the flabbergasted Ace a sly smile over your shoulder.

 

“oooh, she is really testing my patience today,” Ace grumbled, his left eye socket twitching just slightly. His gaze flitted down to the silent skeleton in the chair, eyes sockets narrowing drastically. “she didn’t kiss you, did she?”

 

Chief’s face flushed completely red, “dude, what the hell??”

 

 

 

 

“A-Alright, Sweets, I j-just need you to relax for a m-moment.”

 

“OKAY.”

 

“Uh..? T-That d-doesn’t look very r-relaxed…”

 

“I AM RELAXED. I AM THE MOST RELAXED. THE RELAXEDEST.”

 

Alphys let out a sigh, lowering the capped syringe she had poised in her small hand. She was currently trying to take an extraction from Sweets’ soul, and she could only do that if he would physically and emotionally relax.

 

Him shoving himself up against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest was the definite opposite of relaxed.

 

“S-Sweets…”

 

“I WOULD LIKE TO WAIT FOR THE HUMAN.” He kept his arms crossed, looking very much like a stubborn child which only brought another sigh from the yellow monster.

 

“O-Okay, that’s f-fine,” she set the syringe on the small work table and instead picked up the vial and popped the cap off, “W-While we w-wait, c-could you fill t-this with your m-magic?”

 

Sweets blinked at her before studying the vial she held out to him. He took it and held it close to himself. “DO… YOU HAVE TO WATCH ME?”

 

Alphys opened her mouth to speak, but she was interrupted as the door opened. You quietly sauntered in around the door, a little smile on your face, “Heyyy, sorry about that, Sweets. Didn’t mean to make you wait.”

 

Alphys gave you a grateful smile before turning back to the little skeleton on the table, “W-Would you l-like some privacy?”

 

Sweets glanced down, mumbling something in a tiny voice you didn’t think possible for him. You glanced between Alphys and Sweets, the yellow monster leaning forward, “W-What was that?”

 

A blue glow washed underneath Sweets’ sockets as he ducked down even farther, “UM, CAN… CAN IT JUST BE ME AND (NAME)? WHILE I… DO THIS?” He glanced away as he motioned to the little bottle in his hands.

 

Alphys blinked to the little skeleton before nodding, “O-Of course, j-just come and g-get me when you’re r-ready, okay?” She stood and offered him a nervous smile before turning to waddle to the door.

 

You moved to hop onto the table next to Sweets, causing him to jump a little but otherwise didn’t look at you. You waited for him to say something or do something, but after a few minutes of silence you began to become concerned. He just stared down at the floor, a conflicted look on his face.

 

You gently placed a hand on his shoulder, “Sweets? You alright?”

 

His gaze flitted over to the hand you had rested in your lap, the dark bruises already standing out nicely against the skin of your knuckles. He felt guilt burrow deep into his soul as he just stared at the purple splotches and soon you caught on. Tugging your hand out of sight you put on a bright smile.

 

“DOES IT HURT?”

 

Your smile faltered slightly, “What? Uh, no, not really. Just a little sore, that’s all.” You chuckled uneasily as Sweets’ face twisted from conflicted to sad. You rushed off the table to stand in front of him, crouching down slightly with your hands hovering over his arms, “Hey, hey now, what’s going on?”

 

Big, blue-tinted tears began to gather at the edges of his sockets as he just glared harshly at the bottle in his lap. His shoulders shook with a small hiccup that led to a strained sob, “I’M SORRY…”

 

“What are you sorry for? Sweets, listen to me,” your voice was soft as you cooed to him, “Everything is fine, okay? I’m fine, you’re safe. Those guys didn’t stand a chance against us!”

 

You reached up and flicked his tears away and he blinked up at you, “THEY… THEY DIDN’T?”

 

“Heck no!” You let out a chuckle, “How could they, anyway? I had the best backup in the world! I mean, did you see how badass Chief was?”

 

Sweets giggled lightly, sniffling, “YEAH…”

 

“And Sans wouldn’t let those goons hurt me anyways. They would have had a bad time.”

 

“THE WORST.”

 

“Ace would have, like, smoldered them to death with his dastardly good looks or something.”

 

Sweets let out another giggle, this one much happier and lighthearted. You smiled and straightened up, a semi-serious look on your face as you pointed down to the bottle. “Now, you need to do what Doctor Alphys says!”

 

Sweets straightened up, raising his hand to his brow in a salute, “YES, MA’AM!”

 

 

The rest of the day went by swimmingly. Sweets and Ace successfully succumbed to their tests, and Chief only tried to bite Alphys once! You considered that a win, though Alphys was a little shaken up for a while after.

 

“Well, it’s gettin’ kinda late,” you sighed, plopping down next to Chief in your chair. You leaned over, finding the circuit board almost completely reconstructed. You let out a low whistle, “Man, I’ve never been more envious of something in my life…”

 

Chief glanced at you, a ghost of a smile on his face, “i could teach ya, if ya want.”

 

You blinked, “Really?”

 

“yea, it’d be nice to do this with someone again…”

 

You laughed, the sound breathy and happy as you responded, “Yes! Please, that’d be so cool! Reconstructing TIMM would be way faster that way.”

 

Chief nodded to you, ginning as he soldered the last piece of the board together.

 

You felt a little tap on your shoulder and you swiveled around in your chair, meeting an anxious-looking Alphys with her hands tucked behind her back. “Yeeeeeees?”

 

“I-I, uh, well, I w-wanted to h-help you out the b-best I could, so,” she brought her hands around, holding out three different cellphones to you, “I m-made these. S-So i-instances like yesterday w-won’t happen again…”

 

You grinned, plucking one of the phones from her grasp. They each had a color scheme, and this one was light blue and silver.

 

“T-That one is for S-Sweets, the y-yellow one is for A-Ace, and Chief’s i-is the r-red one…”

 

You turned the device over in your hands, your eyes lingering on the upside down heart engraved on the back. “Wow… You made these? That’s so cool!”

 

A blush washed over Alphys face as she began to sputter. You stood and wrapped her in a hug, almost pulling her off the ground. “Y-You really t-think so?”

 

“Of course! You’re amazing, Al!” You swung her slightly before setting her back onto her feet, a bright smile on your face.

 

 

 

You said your goodbyes to Alphys and Sans as you led the skeletons back across the campus to your apartment. As soon as you opened your door, Sweets darted in and began searching for Felix, who no doubt was hiding from the loud skeleton.

 

Your eyes flicked to the letter you had found taped on your door from the night before, your name written out quite gracefully across the face of it. Chief plopped down on the couch as Ace took a seat at the dining table with you.

 

“so, what’s that for?” His voice drawled slightly as he leaned his mandible onto a hand, watching you lazily.

 

“Hmm, well,” you popped the envelope open and dumped its contents out onto the table. Two sets of keys tumbled out, and that was it. No letter or anything along with it. “I’m thinking these are the keys to your new apartments.”

 

You picked up one set and examined them. “These ones go to the one across the hall, so I’m gessing those belong to the one right next door.”

 

Ace reached over and snatched them up. “so you can be the girl next door,” he purred, a wink tailing his words.

 

You rolled your eyes, “Oh, why thank you so much for making me the girl next door. You can be the neighbor I try to avoid.”

 

Ace leaned back and placed a hand over his exposed rib cage, a pained expression on his face, “oh, kitten, how you strike me so.”

 

“Yeah, yeah, whatever, Romeo,” you snorted and shoved yourself out of your seat, tossing the other keys to an almost unconscious Chief on your couch. He jolted slightly, furrowing his brow at you. He opened his mouth to say something but you held up a hand to stop him as your phone started to ring.

 

Sans face flashed on your screen and you hit the green button, answering with a happy, “Sansy-pants!”

 

“(name), we gotta problem.”

 

You blinked, placing a hand on your hip, “A problem?”

 

“yeah, lock your doors and windows. hurry.”

 

“Uh… Why?”

 

Sans spoke in a rushed tone, his voice a little shaky, “paps is on his way. somethin’ about a surprise spaghetti party.”

 

Silence.

 

“…What?”

 

“my bro is about to be at your place. your place full of me’s.”

 

Shit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't hurt me.
> 
> No more~
> 
> ***
> 
> I'm doing requests for this story! I feel it would definitely add to the experience and I could show how Reader interacts with each skell individually.
> 
> If you'd like to submit a request you can either message me here or on my tumblr! Please include a short description of what you'd like to see!
> 
> *No lemons please, as that would drastically change the story as a whole. Some limeyness could work as long as it's not too bold.


	9. In Which Papyrus Makes Some New Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus comes for a visit. Also, Ace gets confused.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy shit balls, guys, I am so sorry for this late update! Stuff has been going down at work, and at home, and with the fam, so it's been really hard to find time to sit and write. But I just wanna say thank you all for being so patient and awesome with me, it really means a lot! I hope you like this chapter!
> 
> Lemme know what you think!

Okay.

 

Don’t panic.

 

Don’t.

 

Panic.

 

“don’t panic.”

 

“Don’t panic,” you breathed into the speaker, but your clammy hands were speaking otherwise. You heard shuffling around on the other end of the phone, “Sans, what are you doing?”

 

“c’mon, doll, you know i don’t run-,”

 

“Sans, you can freaking teleport!” You were slowly getting more and more agitated. “Where was Pap when he told you he was coming over??”

 

“like not even five minutes away. and that was three minutes ago.”

 

You jumped as his voice came from behind you and not through the phone. You whipped around and opened your mouth to say something, but a loud knocking came from your door. It was a uniform knock, four sharp raps ringing out into your now silent apartment.

 

“HUMAN FRIEND! IT IS I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, STANDING OUTSIDE YOUR DOOR!”

 

You sucked in a breath, your eyes flitting to the short skeleton next to you. His eye sockets were wide and he rushed to the door to ensure that it was locked. “Sansss,” you hissed out in a whisper. He whipped around and pressed his back to the door, placing a bony finger over his strained grin.

 

“FRIEND?” Another round of knocks, a little more impatient this time. “ARE YOU ALRIGHT? IF NEED BE, THE GREAT PAPYRUS COULD STAND OUT HERE ALL NIGHT!”

 

Chief sat up from his place on the sofa, the lights in his sockets completely gone. He breathed out your name, and you noticed his voice had a slight tremor to it. Oh, shit. Shit, what were you gonna do?? You moved to the edgy skeleton and gently ushered him up to his feet.

 

“Hey, hey, are you alright?” Your words were soft as you spoke to him. He didn’t answer but visibly shook when Papyrus’ voice rang out again.

 

“NYEH, HUMAN! I AM BEGINNING TO BECOME CONCERNED… I WILL GIVE YOU SIXTY SECONDS BEFORE I REMOVE THE DOOR FROM IT’S HINGES!”

 

Chief stilled, his neutral grin pulled down into a painful frown as he just glanced at the door. “Wait, is it Papyrus?” Was Papyrus freaking him out?

 

A small nod. That’s all you needed before you ushered him to your bedroom. You nearly bumped into Sweets in the hallway, the recently captured Felix purring softly in his arms. He blinked as you rushed past, “HUMAN?”

 

“Shh, Sweets, hang on a sec,” you whispered, placing your finger to your lips in a quiet motion. The little skeleton nodded before following you, staying a few feet behind.

 

You pieced together that Chief was having some level of an anxiety attack, and figured that having loud and boisterous Papyrus around him probably was the cause. You’d suffered from quite a few of them throughout your school days and hated to admit that you’d grown accustomed to them, but you’d never had to assist someone else with them. It was also entirely possible that Chief was suffering from PTSD, and that was something you’d had no experience in whatsoever…

 

You ushered chief to your bed and gently led him to sit against your pillows. At some point his hand had found yours and when you tried to move away to grab what you needed, it was almost impossible to get him to let go. Giving him a patient smile you knelt down in front of him, “Don’t you worry, Chief. Everything’s gonna be just fine, okay?”

 

Chief’s gaze flicked from you to the door, his lights landing on Sweets as he hovered in the doorway. A loud knocking echoed from the living room followed by Papyrus’ loud voice once more, “THIRTY SECONDS, HUMAN!”

 

Wasting no time, you turned and opened the drawer on your bedside table. Chief still had a good grip on your hand so it was a little difficult, but you managed to pull out what you were looking for. An old iPod you’d tossed in the drawer ages ago along with a pair of noise-cancelling headphones.

 

You moved to sit on the bed, swiftly untangling the cord before switching on the device. Chief cast you a wary look as his hand tightened around yours. You’d learned from Sans a while ago that, although he didn’t have physical ears he could still use headphones and listen to music. It was quite fascinating, really, because the sound waves could interact with a monster’s soul, intertwining with their magic.

 

Finally freeing your hand from his grasp you gently slipped the headphones over Chief’s skull, adjusting them a bit before you pulled away. “what… what’s this for?”

 

You fumbled with the iPod for a moment before finding a playlist you’d put together when you needed to relax. Before you hit play you tugged your comforter out from beneath him and promptly wrapped it around his shoulders. “I used to get anxiety attacks all the time, you know. Sometimes I needed to just… Get away for a while.” You smiled and pulled the blanket up around his neck, “Just relax, okay?”

 

Chief hunkered down into the thick blanket, and he hated to admit he kind of liked the attention you were giving him. He was used to being alone and he’d never had anyone fawn over and care for him before. He gave a small nod as he pulled the blanket tighter around his body, giving you the okay as you pressed the play button and led him to lay back against the pillows.

 

“HUMAN?” Sweets shuffled up to you, tugging on your sleeve. “IS CHIEF OKAY?”

 

Tucking Chief in even more you smiled, “He’ll be fine, Sweets. He just… Isn’t feeling so great right now-,”

 

**_CRASH!_ **

****

“FRIEND!”

 

Yeah, that was the sound of your door being kicked open for the second time this week.

 

You rushed to your feet and tugged Sweets along with you, casting one look to the skeleton tucked into your bed before shutting the door behind you. You sucked in a breath, readying yourself for what awaited you in the living room.

 

 

 

“SANS! I DIDN’T KNOW YOU WERE HERE!”

 

“heh, yeah-,”

 

“OH! WHO’S THIS?”

 

Just as you entered the room you noticed Papyrus staring curiously at the other tall skeleton lounging at your kitchen table. You poked your head around and Ace locked eyes with you. ‘Please, please, please don’t say anything stupid…’

 

Papyrus neared him, setting the various grocery bags onto the table, “WOWIE! I DIDN’T KNOW THERE WERE OTHER SKELETON MONSTERS! LOOK, SANS!” The loud skeleton held a gloved hand out to Ace while gracefully proclaiming, “I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS! BUT BECAUSE IT IS OBVIOUS THAT I AM SO GREAT, YOU MAY JUST CALL ME PAPYRUS.”

 

Ace’s gaze flicked from you to Papyrus. He stood, and he was only slightly shorter than the jovial skeleton, and fit his hand into Pap’s awaiting one. “nice ta meet ya, pal. name’s ace. ‘m sure we’ll get along just **spine**.”

 

Silence.

 

“SAAAAAANS! YOU’VE ALREADY NEGATIVELY INFLUENCED A POTENTIAL FRIEND WITH YOUR HORRIBLE PUNS!” Papyrus swiftly took his hand back and instead placed them both on his hip bones. “HONESTLY, THEY’RE JUST TERRIBLE.”

 

You giggled and walked forward to join them, Sweets’ hand held firmly in yours, “Nah, he’s just like that, Pap.”

 

A loud gasp came from the tall skeleton as he whipped around to you, “OH, FRIEND! YOU ARE OKAY!” A breathless laugh left you as he pulled you up off the ground in a hug, tugging your hand out of the momentarily forgotten Sweets’.

 

“Yes! I’m okay!” You laughed, wiggling slightly as Papyrus swung you around with your arms pinned to your sides.

 

“WONDERFUL! I WAS WORRIED, YOU KNOW. YOU HAVEN’T ANSWERED ANY OF MY TEXT MESSAGES!” A sad sigh left him as he pressed the side of his mandible into your hair, petting you affectionately with the arm that wasn’t wrapped around you.

 

You finally felt the ground back beneath your feet and pulled back, “Eheh, well, I have been kinda busy… I see you already met Ace.” You felt Sweets’ small form press into you, one of his arms reaching up to grip onto the back of your shirt as he peeked shyly around and up.

 

“NYEH?” Papyrus seemed to finally notice the short skeleton behind you and peered down. “…SANS?”

 

Sans sauntered up to stand next to his brother, his hands stuffed into his hoodie, “nah, sorry bro.”

 

Papyrus looked from Sweets to Sans, then from Sans across the room to Ace, then back down to Sweets, eye sockets narrowing as he leaned forward. Sweets ducked back behind you, shoving his face into your sweatshirt. “Pap, this is Sweets,” you twisted your body slightly and beckoned him out from behind you, “Sweets, this is Papyrus, Sans’ brother.”

 

You felt kind of silly having to explain who Papyrus was, but it seemed that the little guy was a little weirded out at the overhyped version of his brother. You decided baby steps would have to be taken here, even more so when Chief would be ready to meet him. Teeny, tiny, baby steps.

 

It took only a little more coaxing to get Sweets to fully stand in front of Papyrus and for a moment they just stared at one another. You shared a wary look with Sans, who just slightly shrugged as Sweets and Papyrus inspected one another. You placed a hand on Sweets shoulder, “Go on, sweetie, say hi.”

 

Sweets’ gaze flitted down to your hand and noticed it was your bruised one. Creasing his brow, his thoughts briefly recalled the events of yesterday as well as your encouraging words from this morning. He had to be strong. He had to be brave! He just had to be, for you!

 

Taking a mighty step forward he placed his fists on his hips, puffing out his chest as he declared, “IT IS QUITE AN HONOR TO MEET YOU, PAPYRUS! ALLOW ME TO INTRODUCE MYSELF FOR I AM THE MAGNIFICENT SANS!”

 

You blanched slightly. Sweets didn’t seem to notice his slip up until far too late and his grin became strained.

 

“UH- ER- I MEAN, THE MAGNIFICENT SWEETS!”

 

Okay, Papyrus wasn’t stupid. A little oblivious at times, yes, but not stupid. Slowly he began to put the pieces together as he looked over the skeletons around him once more before turning ever so patiently to his brother.

 

“SANS.”

 

Beads of sweat dotted Sans’ skull as he looked uneasily up to his brother, “uh, yea?”

 

Very calmly, Papyrus crossed his arms over his broad ribcage, “SANS, WHAT DID YOU DO?”

 

Sans placed a hand over his chest, looking honestly shocked, “why do you always think i did somethin’?!”

 

“WELL OBVIOUSLY YOU HAD SOMETHING TO DO WITH THIS!”

 

“you have no proof.”

 

“SANS, I AM STARING AT A COPY OF YOU!”

 

“I’LL HAVE YOU KNOW I’M WAY COOLER THAN HIM, THANK YOU VERY MUCH!”

 

“yeah, he’s- wait, what?”

 

You let out an undignified snort at the words being exchanged, you short laughter stopping when you felt another presence pop up next to you. Glancing up you found Ace watching with mild amusement in his eyes. You leaned over and whispered, “Well, at least nothing has burst into flames quite yet.”

 

“yea, or exploded.”

 

“Or imploded.”

 

Papyrus’ attention turned to you, “WHY ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT IMPLOSIONS? THAT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE CURRENT SITUATION! WE DO NOT TALK ABOUT IMPLOSIONS AT A SURPRISE SPAGHETTI PARTY!”

 

You covered your mouth in an attempt to hide your grin, “Ah, I’m sorry, Pap. I’m just surprised at how well you’re taking this? We all thought you would flip.”

 

“I AM FLIPPING. THIS IS ME FLIPPING!”

 

 

 

Papyrus slowly stirred the pot of noodles, perplexity etched onto his skull. “SO… THEY ARE SANS BUT NOT LIKE THE SANS WE KNOW?”

 

You nodded as you pulled out a new tomato, rinsing it off before placing it on the cutting board, “Yeah, well, kind of? They’re just from another universe. Where they’re from they still have a brother, other versions of you, and they still have their friends. Everything’s just a bit different.” You quietly began to chop half of the tomato as Papyrus stewed in his thoughts.

 

“OTHER VERSIONS OF ME?”

 

“Mhmm, apparently in Sweets’ universe you’re a lot like our Sans.”

 

“GASP! NO!” Papyrus whipped around and stared at you with horror. “THAT IS AWFUL!”

 

You chuckled as you started dicing up the second half of the red fruit while your mind strayed a bit. You were so curious to meet these other versions of everyone else. You wanted to meet the Undyne and Alphys of the other universes. You’d love to meet Sweets’ Papyrus, you’d probably get along with him really well! Especially since he’s another pancake lover.

 

But then…

 

You let out a sigh as your thoughts trailed to the skeleton currently taking refuge in your bedroom. You instantly felt your heart sink and your smile falter. You didn’t pity Chief, you just… Wanted to give him better than what he’d been dealt. It hurt you to think if his Papyrus was mean or abusive. It wasn’t right. And what was worse is there really wasn’t anything you could do about it from here. He’d have to go home eventually, just like Ace and Sweets.

 

“HUMAN?”

 

You jumped slightly as Papyrus spoke softly from behind you. Craning your neck around you looked up at him, “Hm?”

 

“IF THERE ARE OTHER SANSES AND OTHER ME’S… DOES THAT MEAN THERE ARE OTHER YOU’S AS WELL?”

 

You blinked. Huh, you hadn’t really thought of that. Surely there were other versions of you, right? It was entirely probable. “Well, I don’t see why not. It does give you something to think about, doesn’t it?”

 

Papyrus silently nodded as he drained the water from the noodles.

 

You shuffled over and nudged him lightly, “Does all this kind of weird you out?”

 

“WELL, YES, JUST A LITTLE.” The tall skeleton let out a short sigh as he watched the water drain down the sink. “HOWEVER, MAYBE SOMETHING GOOD COULD COME FROM ALL OF THIS?”

 

You smiled, “Yeah, maybe so.”

 

 

The spaghetti was just about finished when you poked your head into the living room. No doubt the rest of your skeleton posse would be hungry right about now. You opened your mouth to say something but instead let out a little chuckle at the scene before you.

 

Sans laid sprawled out on the sofa, the armrest serving as a pillow while he snoozed away, with Sweets and Ace hunkered down on the floor. Sweets was trying his best to remain quiet while Ace just looked on with mild amusement as the little skelley added another cheerio to the steadily growing pillar of cereal balanced on Sans’ forehead.

 

They hadn’t seemed to notice you just yet as Ace quietly poured more pieces of the cereal from the box into Sweets’ awaiting hand. You simply leaned against the doorframe and watched silently. The stack of cheerios started to lean so rather than adding one to it Sweets started a new stack on the bridge of Sans’ nose. He’d added about three more when the stack began to topple over, the little circular breakfast foods rolling down into Sans’ hood, but he didn’t move in the slightest. Man, that guy could sleep.

 

You placed a hand over your mouth and tried to stifle a little giggle as you pulled out your phone, swiftly pulling up your camera. You gave the device a second to focus before tapping the capture button, successfully taking the picture just as Sweets started a new stack on Sans’ left cheekbone. You inspected the picture, smiling lightly at how determined and focused Sweets looked. When your eyes roamed over the other conscious skeleton in the picture you froze as he was staring straight at you.

 

You flicked your eyes up, locking gazes with a smirking Ace. You’d been caught. You stuck your tongue out at him as he just winked before handing over the box of Cheerios to Sweets. He promptly retrieved his own phone, flicking on the screen before he swiftly typed something. Moments later your phone vibrated in your hand, indicating you had a new message.

 

You narrowed your eyes at the skeleton before opening the message.

 

**‘*told ya a picture would last longer’**

You felt your face flush as you quickly exited out of the offending (not really) message before pocketing your device. Your attention flicked back to the other skeletons as Sweets began to giggle quietly, jerking his hands back as Sans began to stir from his nap.

 

“OH NO, I WAS ABOUT TO BREAK MY RECORD!” Sweets giggled out as Sans movements caused the stacks of cheerios began to wobble and finally cascade off their perch.

 

“huh, wha..?” Sans blinked sleepily as he pushed himself into a sitting position, the cheerios tumbling down his hoodie into his lap. He picked one up and squinted at it before looking at all the other cereal bits that nestled into his jacket and shorts.

 

“Alright, alright, let’s stop using Sans for entertainment,” you chuckled as you rounded the corner, stopping behind the seated Sweets. “He doesn’t look very **cheery** about it, y’know.”

 

At first the little skelley looked happy to see you, but his smile disappeared as he gasped at your terrible pun. “HUMAN, DON’T.”

 

You swooped the tiny skeleton off the floor, “Aw, don’t be upsetti, Sweets, let’s have some spaghetti!”

 

“NOOOO, PLEASE, IT HURTS!” Sweets cried dramatically whilst trying to escape your grasp, to which you just cuddled him closer.

 

 

The spaghetti went by fast, and you were quite impressed. Papyrus was getting better! When he first cooked for you, the noodles were undercooked and the sauce was somehow sweet with flecks of glitter mixed in. Now the noodles were almost perfect and the sauce had just the right amount of zest to it. And no glitter.

 

You stood from your spot at your table and began to gather the dishes while Sweets was in the midst of a story. He was recalling the events that led up to his universe escaping the Underground, and apparently the human that helped them was named Chara? It was odd, since in this universe it was little Frisk.

 

Sweets’ animated voice followed you into the kitchen as you delicately placed the dirty dishes into your sink. You flipped on the tap, allowing the sink to fill with hot water while you turned to the pot of leftover spaghetti on the stove. Swiftly you retrieved a bowl with a lid from the cabinet and scooped the remaining pasta inside, placing the now empty pot into the sink with the rest of the dinnerware.

 

You hardly noticed the other presence in your kitchen, so when you turned around to come face to face (well, face to top-half-of-skull) with Sans you gasped hard enough that you choked. Sputtering violently you leaned back against the counter, holding a hand over your frazzled heart.

 

“heya, dollface,” the short skeleton chuckled through his shit eating grin.

 

“Holy crap, Sans, you gotta stop doin’ that!”

 

“aw, what? an’ miss out on scarin’ you to the bone?”

 

You narrowed your eyes at him and turned your attention to the filled sink, turning the tap off as you muttered, “I seriously hate you right now. So much hate do I have in my being for you.”

 

You felt him brush up beside you, nudging you gently with his elbow, “nah, you don’t.”

 

“Sure, keep telling yourself that.”

 

You began to scrub the plates in the sink, a comfortable silence falling between you and the skeleton.

 

“hey.”

 

You hummed, glancing to the side at the monster next to you. “Heya.”

 

A soft blue dusted Sans’ face as he stuffed his hands deeper in to his pockets. He cleared his nonexistent throat and did a little shuffle, digging the toe of his house slipper into the floor. “so, uh… what’re you up to tomorrow night?”

 

You paused your scrubbing before turning slightly to him, the corners of your lips barely turning upwards. “Nothing that I know of… Why?”

 

He leaned away, his eye lights flitting up to the ceiling as he seemed to struggle getting his words together. The blue on his face only seemed to deepen the longer he struggled and little beads of sweat started to line his forehead.

 

Chuckling, you nudged him slightly, “Sans?”

 

Sans took in a breath, deciding to just bite the bullet. You were his best friend! You wouldn’t think this was weird or odd… or weird. Weirder than he was anyways. “i was jus’ wonderin’… would you wanna, i dunno, go do somethin’ tomorrow night?”

 

You raised a brow, causing him to flounder in his words. “Go do something?”

 

“y’know, like… with me.”

 

Your smile slowly grew as you rested into your hip, focusing back into the sink as you hummed softly. “Annnnd, what would I be doing tomorrow night? With you?”

 

“well, it’s, uh, been a while since we’ve like… gone to the movies? or… gone to dinner?”

 

You felt your heart get all warm and fuzzy and a light flush rose to your cheeks as you looked back over to the flustered skeleton, your brow still raised. You still said nothing and when his gaze met yours you couldn’t help but smile brightly.

 

“i just… i think it’d be nice… considering all the craziness that’s goin’ on.”

 

Placing your newly cleaned plates into the dish rack to dry, you wiped your hands off on the dish rag before turning to him, “Sure. It sounds nice.”

 

Sans slightly stilled, blinking up at you, “wha-uh really?”

 

You nodded, “Yeah! And you’re right, it’s been a minute since we’ve done anything with just us, y’know?”

 

The skeleton instantly perked up, letting out a breath he wasn’t aware he was holding. “good! great, that’s good. soooo…”

 

You chuckled, “You can pick me up at seven, kay?”

 

Sans smiled, a real genuine smile and not one of his neutral grins, his nervousness instantly ebbing away. Man, he didn’t even know why he was so nervous in the first place. The two of you used to go out together all the time! It wasn’t anything new… Oh well. “alright, i’ll pick ya up at seven. anyway, pap and me are gonna head on out, ‘s gettin’ pretty late.”

 

Smiling you scooped him up into a hug, swinging him off the floor. “Thanks, Sans, for everything. And for being here when I could’ve totally lost my shit.”

 

“nah, ‘s nothing. we coulda lost our shit together.” He chuckled as you set him back down on the floor, bright smiles on both of your faces.

 

 

You said your goodbyes to the skelebros, thanking them for coming over and especially for Papyrus’ wonderful cuisine. You giggled as Ace plagued the taller skeleton with more of his puns, afterwards Papyrus had promptly made a hasty exit with his brother.

 

You shook your head lightly as the door shut behind the brothers, “Must you antagonize him, Ace?” A playful smile tugged at your lips and Ace just shrugged, his grin mirroring your own.

 

Turning into your living room, you let out a happy little laugh when you found Sweets curled up on the couch, snoozing away. Swiftly retrieving a folded blanket from the back of the couch, you gently covered him with it and tucked him in lightly.

 

“So, is he gonna stay with you? Or Chief?”

 

Ace plopped down on the loveseat, leaning back into the cushions as he yawned. “eh, he said he wanted to stay here. nothin’ against us, he just likes ya more.”

 

Blinking you looked over your shoulder at him. “Really? Well, I guess I could clean up the guest room…” Leaning back on your haunches you seemed to ponder it. It wouldn’t be a terrible idea to have the little guy staying with you… It would honestly probably be really fun! “Well, guess I know what my weekend project is.”

 

“yep, well, ‘m gonna turn in for the night,” Ace stood and stretched, another lazy yawn tumbling from his mandible.

 

“Oh! Hey, wait,” you stood, dusting off your jeans and moved to him, “I, uh, checked on Chief earlier and he was out cold. I wouldn’t have a problem carrying him but, well, he’s really heavy. A lot heavier than Sweets is anyway, and he wouldn’t wake up when I tried shaking him…”

 

Ace raised a brow bone, “ok?”

 

You huffed, “I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind helping me get him across the hall? He’s kinda in my bed.”

 

That familiar sultry grin broke out across Ace’s face as he leaned towards you, his sockets lidded as he gazed at you. “aw shucks, kitten, if a bed’s what you’re needin’ you could always share mine,” his voice was deep and husky and you could feel the warmth of his breath tumble over your jaw and neck.

 

You thought that by now you’d be used to Ace’s random and slightly inappropriate advances considering he’d been doing it since he got here, however this time it definitely caught you off guard. You felt your heart leap involuntarily as it rammed against your ribcage rather hard, a violent red painted your cheeks as you just stared at him. “Ace, what the fuck, man??”

 

He let out a soft chuckle and you hated how it tumbled around in your chest rather pleasantly.

 

“God, you’re such a jerk… Are you gonna help me or not?” You huffed and crossed your arms, trying to rid your face of that awful warmth.

 

“yea, yea, i’ll help ya, kitten,” he chuckled, swiftly gliding around you and down the hall.

 

“Ugh, stop calling me that,” you muttered as you followed him, your brow pulled down in the center.

 

 

Closing Chief’s door behind you, you let out a sigh and made sure you locked it. Ace stood silently next to you, his hands stuffed in his jean pockets.

 

“Thanks for that, Ace,” you offered him a small smile, “I’d probably still be struggling to get him off the bed.”

 

He shrugged, “’s no problem, babe.”

 

You stilled, crossing your arms sternly across your chest, “Hey, stop calling me stuff like that. I have a name, you know.”

 

He shuffled a little closer to you, “mhm.”

 

You stood straighter, “Are you even listening to me? I’m serious.”

 

His grin only grew as he stopped a few inches before you, leaning down so he was eye level. “’m listenin’ to ya, doll.”

 

You leaned back slightly, your back just barely touching Chief’s front door. You shivered at his closeness, a little put off that he was cornering you. “N-No, I really don’t think you are-”

 

He raised a hand and gently gripped your chin, tilting your head up to look him straight in the eyes as he breathed out, “you really should lighten up, (Name).”

 

Your body trembled with involuntary shudders and you swiftly uncrossed your arms, pressing your hands flat to his exposed rib cage. You tried to ignore how close he was. How warm his bones were beneath your touch. How the way he looked at you caused your heart to beat rapidly inside your own chest. Lips trembling, you tried to form words but each time they were within your reach they just eluded you.

 

“oh, what? no sass?” Ace chuckled smoothly, weaving through the little space between you as his other arm swooped around the dip in your back, tugging you to him. “you’ve been testing and teasin’ me all day, kitten. now, i dunno how it works around here, but where i come from that ain’t fair.”

 

Pressing your palms even harder into his ribs you drew in a shaky breath, “A-Ace, c’mon, l-let go.” You hoped you were trembling from fear and uneasiness rather than… Excitement. Your heart was pounding in your ears while you slightly glared up at the encroaching skeleton, trying and failing to turn your face away as he still had a good grip on your jaw.

 

“hm, nah, i don’t think i will.” He seemed to gaze deeper into you as he pondered something. “what about a trade?”

 

You tried to lean back, frowning up at him, “What kind of trade?”

 

“how bout… a kiss for your freedom.”

 

You deadpanned. “A kiss?”

 

He grinned lazily, “a kiss.”

 

You scoffed at him, balling your hands into fists, “Ace, I’m not kissing you just because you’re telling me to.”

 

“’m not tellin’ you to do anything. merely suggestin’ is all.”

 

You gave him a wary look, not really able to do much else as he had you pressed against a door, and said nothing.

 

“just one is all it’ll take, kitten.”

 

You flushed, “Why do you want one??”

 

He shrugged, “i feel as if your… affections have eluded me. seems that everyone else is gettin’ lovin’ but me. i feel left out.”

 

You stared at him for just a few more seconds, seriously weighing your options. He couldn’t just… Hold you captive out here. Right? He’d let go eventually… But who knows how long that would take? It could be hours, and it was already really late. And if just kissing him would ensure your freedom you’d rather get out as soon as possible.

 

Huffing out a sigh, you swallowed your pride, “Fine.”

 

A large grin broke out across Ace’s face as he tilted his skull down to you, lidded eye sockets boring into your own eyes.

 

Leaning up on your tip toes a single though flitted into your mind. How the hell were you supposed to kiss a skeleton?? He didn’t have lips! Were you just supposed to peck him on the teeth? Did he have like… Magical lips that would appear for kissing purposes?? Your eyes had fallen shut but they snapped back open, Ace’s amused eye lights meeting your confused gaze.

 

“Um, I… I don’t… How is this supposed to work?”

 

He raised a brow bone. “whaddya mean?”

 

Lightly gesturing, you cleared your throat, “You.. Um… You don’t have… Lips? I’ve never, like, kissed a skeleton… on the… mouth. Before…”

 

He snorted softly, obviously taken off guard by your rambling. “just… close your eyes, kay?”

 

You did so, and while doing so you hated to admit you were insanely curious. How would it feel? Would it be like… just kissing bone? Would it be ‘magical’? Or would it be totally anticlimactic?

 

All those thoughts were whisked away when you felt something bump into your lips. It was hard at first, hard and cold, but soon gave way into something slightly warm and soft. Like… Fucking lips?! What??

 

Snapping your eyes open, you tried to pull away to see exactly what you were smooching but failed as Ace’s hand moved to hold the back of your neck in place. He pressed himself to you a little harsher, the softness on your lips moving across them rather fluidly, the sensation causing your eyes to flutter closed once more.

 

Your heart swelled deep within your chest as your hands trailed up to gently brush against his collar bones, drawing a gravelly groan from deep within his rib cage. The arm that wrapped itself around you tightened considerably, his bony phalanges gently kneading at your waist as he lost himself in the moment.

 

You were beginning to as well, feeling yourself become lightheaded and weightless as your lips parted, a sweet sigh tumbling out only to be silenced as he delved deeper into the kiss, pressing you even harder against the door. Soon, your hands moved, one reaching behind to push his skull more into you, the other resting right on top of his sternum. Ace’s breathing was rushed and harsh and yours soon mimicked his.

 

Then all at once he pulled away, breathing harshly against your skin as he stared at you with wide eye sockets. He had originally intended for it to be just a small peck. Something innocent and quick, something he could tease you with on occasion. What he hadn’t expected was how your lips would feel against him, addicting and fulfilling against his magic. It had been something he would have never expected, especially from something as small as a kiss.

 

For a moment the two of you just stared at one another, trying and failing to process what had just happened. Slowly, Ace untangled himself from you, his punctured hands seeming to hover over your body before he retracted them to himself. You pulled your hands from him as well, but left them just barely touching the cool leather of his jacket.

 

“Uh…,” you cleared your throat, trying to shake a foreign warmth that settled in your gut, making you feel a bit squeamish, “Can.. Am I free to go?”

 

Ace only nodded, not trusting himself with his words. He was slightly ashamed to have let himself lose control so quickly like that, that shame causing him to avoid looking you directly in the eyes. His magic was coursing through him, slipping all along his bones in a way he wasn’t used to and he’d be lying if he said he didn’t want whatever was happening to continue. If he hadn’t pulled away… It very well might have.

 

You gracefully whisked around him back to your own door, keeping your red face directed at the ground in front of you as you reached for the doorknob. “G-Goodnight, Ace.”

 

He’d heard your words, heard the door close and lock behind him, and heard the distant wooshing of his magic still worked up inside of him. His bones were beginning to ache and he lifted a hand to his skull, digging his fingers into his temple.

 

What the hell just happened?


	10. In Which Gaster is Kind of A Dick

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gaster gets excited. Ace has something to confess.

Ace’s tired eyes glanced at the clock for what seemed like the hundredth time that night. The bright, red numbers stared back at him indicating that only two minutes had passed since the last time he looked.

 

1:33 am.

 

As he turned his attention back to the ceiling an exhausted groan escaped him, and though he wanted to sleep he knew he wouldn’t be able to. He was far too awake, his mind running at one hundred miles a minute. And what was he so hung up on?

 

You.

 

Raising a punctured hand to his face, he drifted the tips of his fingers across the softer parts of his mouth. His ‘lips’ if you wanted to be technical. What had come over him? Why did he let himself go so easily with you?

 

Creasing his brow, he knew he’d gone too far this time. He should’ve just listened when you said no, should’ve just let you go. But the opportunity to kiss you was honestly too amazing to pass up.

 

1:34 am.

 

Stars, he’d really really screwed this up.

 

 

 

 

You woke up with the sun the next morning, your eyes feeling heavy and tired. It took hours for you to calm down, and even longer for you to finally fall asleep. You laid there, burning eyes staring blankly at the window. You could see where the sun had begun to rise, peeking through the trees in the distance.

 

You felt like crap. You had a pounding in your head, and each time you blinked it felt like your eyes were going to explode.

 

There was guilt and regret eating at you, settling deep in your gut. You tugged the blanket around you tighter to your body. You didn’t even change into your pajamas last night, honestly just wanting to force yourself to sleep.

 

The thoughts still plagued your mind. You hated it. You hated that you let it all happen. You hated that you _enjoyed it._ You liked kissing Ace, and no matter how many times you told yourself that it was wrong, that you shouldn’t like it, you _did._

You let out an aggravated groan and shoved your face into your pillow, huffing out into it. You felt the bed dip just slightly, and when you lifted your face from the pillow you were met with a sleepy looking Sweets, a dazed Felix in his arms. He blinked slowly as the cat leapt from his arms onto the bed, eyes still on you as he crawled up to lay with you, snuggling himself under the blankets.

 

You cracked a small smile, holding your hand out for Felix to sniff and eventually nudge his head into. Your tired eyes glanced back down to the little skeleton, “Heya, Sweets…”

 

“ARE YOU OKAY?”

 

You blinked at his unexpected question, opening your mouth to say something, but your words faltered slightly. “Uh, wha… What do you mean?”

 

Sweets curled up into himself, facing you with a stubborn and concerned look, and pointed to your chest. “YOU’RE SAD AGAIN… AREN’T YOU?”

 

You let out a little chuckle, “It’s that obvious, huh?”

 

“YOUR SOUL ISN’T HAPPY,” his eye lights flicked from your face down to your chest, “I… I COULD HEAR IT ALL THE WAY IN THE LIVING ROOM.”

 

You creased a brow, “You… Can hear my soul?”

 

You’d learned quite a while ago, along with the rest of the world, that souls did indeed exist, and weren’t just something of fiction. Everyone had a soul, monster and human alike. It was the very culmination of their being. You’d heard stories from Frisk that when they were underground, souls were a way of confrontation and communication. Sometimes even in battle, to which Frisk had sent light-hearted glares to Undyne and Papyrus.

 

Souls differed between species. Human souls apparently looked just like hearts, bright and pulsing, each soul a different color. The colors confused you at first. Frisk had explained that their soul was red, indicating they were driven by Determination. There were other colors as well, green, blue, purple… You couldn’t remember what they stood for, though.

 

Monster souls were the most interesting to you, though. You’d never seen one (you’d never even seen your own soul, actually), but Alphys had told you they were inverted hearts, and they didn’t have colors like human souls. They were all white, indicating that monsters were full of love. You were also told that monsters were very in tune with souls, able to hear different ‘songs’, depending on how happy or sad you were.

 

You’d asked before what kind of soul you had and if you could see it, but everyone had automatically become flustered. Every monster you asked evaded you, dodging your questions and requests to see your soul. Finally, Sans had been the one to explain that revealing one’s soul was an… intimate experience. You couldn’t just pull it out whenever you felt like it. It was a state of total vulnerability and privacy, and when you’d questioned about Frisk’s battles, the skeleton had told you that was a completely different situation in general, promptly shutting you up.

 

Sweets nodded, his eyes still trained on your chest, brow bone pulled into a crease. “WHY ISN’T IT HAPPY, HUMAN?”

 

You couldn’t answer, slightly ashamed that you let the exchange with Ace affect you so harshly. You felt guilt, regret, like you’d betrayed someone… Sans’ face, _your Sans_ , flickered across the back of your eyes and you let out an involuntary sigh.

 

God, were you going to tell him? Should you even tell him? How would he react? What would he say? You feared he would go after Ace, running in headfirst. You knew Sans was strong, but there was no way of knowing how strong Ace was. The last thing you wanted was a fight between them, especially over you. Then that would lead to you having to choose between them, ending in straining your friendship all around. You shuddered, you didn’t want that to happen.

 

“HUMAN?”

 

You pulled yourself out of your thoughts, finding Sweets gazing up at you, his face etched in concern. You offered him a small smile, raising your hand to pull the blankets up around him, creating a warm cocoon around the two of you. “’m alright, sweetie. Just… didn’t sleep very well last night.”

 

Sweets could see right through your pitiful lie, but he could also see the darkness gathering under your eyes. You honestly really did look tired, and though he wanted to know what bothered your soul so badly, he decided against it.

 

“YOU SHOULD TRY AND GET SOME MORE SLEEP, HUMAN,” Sweets spoke softly as he wriggled his way into your arms, nudging his skull up under your chin as he got more comfortable.

 

The longer you held Sweets, the heavier your eyes became. It felt nice, warm and comforting. Sweets was warm, at least warmer than he should have been. A soft blue peeked out from beneath the blanket, swirls of the iridescent color silently drifting from the small skeleton in your arms. It twisted and floated around you, painting the room in a soft blue.

 

What was going on? You creased your brow as your tired mind tried to process what was happening, but everything was slowed down. “Sweets..?”

 

His arms wrapped themselves around your waist as his face was scrunched in deep concentration. “PAPY USED TO GET REALLY BAD NIGHTMARES WHEN WE WERE LITTLE,” he began to explain, his soft words bounding around your tired brain, “I LEARNED THAT IF I CONCENTRATE HARD ENOUGH, MY MAGIC COULD HELP HIM RELAX. SOON, THE NIGHTMARES WENT AWAY, BUT HE STILL HAS SOME TROUBLES SLEEPING.”

 

You were too far gone to understand him anymore, subjecting yourself to the relaxing song of his magic.

 

“I MISS PAPY…”

 

 

 

“now, you just gotta remember to get the circuits as flush as possible, see, cuz if ya don’t, the current won’t connect right,” Chief drawled, showing you how to ensure the pieces of the board he was working on fit together.

 

You nodded, not fully following him. It’s not that he was a bad teacher, he was really detailed in explaining how to get the pieces to fit and work. You just weren’t… All here today. Sweets had successfully lulled you into a few more hours of much needed rest, but the dreams that followed were of one certain punctured handed skeleton.

 

Thankfully, you hadn’t seen Ace yet today. You weren’t sure what you were going to say, or how you were going to even react seeing him. You couldn’t just ignore the nervousness you felt, but you also had a somewhat pleasant fluttering in your chest. You weren’t sure which one you feared more.

 

Chief noticed you weren’t really listening, but he really didn’t feel like calling you out on it. You were obviously distracted, nodding along with that he was saying, even when he’d ask your opinion. He cracked a grin, deciding to have a little fun with this.

 

“now, when you connect the pieces, you gotta be sure that the purple unicorn jumps over the fluffy bunny, or else the rainbow can’t bring gold to the land,” he said, his face serious as he rattled off goofier words, strung together with his barely contained laughter. You just continued nodding, flicking your eyes to him every so often to convince him that you were listening.

 

“now, where does the unicorn have to go?”

 

You blinked, finally tuning him back in. Wait… Unicorn? You cocked a brow at him, your questioning look finally pushing him over the edge. Deep cackles left him as he hunched over, his eye sockets squeezed shut as he laughed.

 

You’d never heard Chief laugh before, and any other time you’d probably be excited about it. But, right now, he was laughing at you, and that fact drew a deep red blush to your face. You didn’t say anything, too embarrassed as you puffed out your cheeks and just let him laugh.

 

He calmed down soon enough, wiping a red-tinted tear from his eye socket as he sat back in his chair, little broken chuckles still trailing his breaths. He swiveled his chair around to face you, a sharp-toothed grin covering his skull. “you seem a little distracted, sweetheart.”

 

You averted your gaze away from him, face still red from embarrassment. “I… I am not…”

 

He snorted, “oh, really?”

 

You pouted slightly, opening your mouth to say something when the object of your distraction sauntered through the door of the lab, punctured hands shoved into his jean pockets. You flicked your eyes up to his at the wrong moment because his gaze met yours head on. Your heart leaped into your throat and it seemed like time stopped.

 

Ace had hoped that he’d avoid seeing you, at least for some part of the day. He’d hardly gotten any sleep, driving himself crazy while tossing and turning in his bed, while somewhere in the back of his mind he wanted to be sleeping on the loveseat in your apartment. Eventually he had tired himself out, but his dreams were plagued with you.

 

The two of you glanced away at the same time, your face painted red, his cheekbones tinted yellow. Ace promptly crossed the room, moving to sit with Sweets at a desk. The little skeleton greeted him with a large grin, showing him his new drawings he’d been working on.

 

Your heart was pounding in your head and you struggled to keep your eyes on your lap. Chief noticed the odd exchange and he cocked a brow bone at you and your weird behavior. “woah, am i missin’ something here?”

 

Was it getting really hot in here or was it just you? Your palms were getting sweaty, and you subconsciously slid them against your jeans, trying to rid them of the warm moisture. You were incredibly uncomfortable, your mind going into fight or flight mode. You stood from your chair, muttering, “Sorry, Chief, not feeling well.”

 

He tried to say something, reaching out to you as you hurried across the lab to the door, determined to get out and back home as soon as you could. Ace watched you try to hustle out, pointedly avoiding looking at him as well.

 

And you tried to leave. But the tall body that belonged to Gaster proved that to be futile. Your smaller form crashed into him and you stumbled backwards. The tall scientist slipped an arm around you to steady you, a deep chuckle rumbling through his chest. “My apologies, my dear. It was not my intention to startle you.”

 

You tried to give the scientist a smile, but the uncomfortable feeling in your chest made it difficult. Gaster’s hold moved from around your waist to around your shoulders, his eyes glinting at you from behind his glasses, “Actually, I’ve been meaning to run into you, no pun intended.”

 

Inwardly you groaned. Like father like son, you supposed, remembering that Gaster liked to pun as well. Outwardly you gave him a curious look, “Really? What’s up?”

 

The tall monster smiled gently at you, “The tests came back for our friends,” he motioned to the skeletons in the room, “And I have already talked to Sans about this,” you raised a brow, wondering where Sans was today, “But one of the tests proved to be quite… interesting, to say the least.”

 

You wanted to ask what he meant, but didn’t get the chance as he left your side and crossed the room, stopping in front of the desk Ace and Sweets were seated at. Ace looked up at him questioningly from his seat, leaned back casually against the cushioned chair.

 

“Ace, would you please follow me? We have some things to discuss.” The gentle smile stayed on Gaster’s face as he gestured towards the door, waiting patiently for Ace to follow.

 

You peered around Gaster’s form, just barely able to see Ace from your position. You locked eyes with him, and he seemed to look to you for confirmation. What did Gaster want? What did he mean by ‘things to discuss’? Just as lost as he was, you shrugged silently.

 

Ace stood, obediently following the scientist. You moved out of the way, giving them space to leave when Gaster stopped just in front of you. He motioned for you to come as well, “Ladies first, my dear.”

 

Wait… Had you done something? Were you in trouble?? Only one thing stood out that involved both you and Ace, and if Gaster had somehow found _that_ out, what would that mean for you?? Swallowing down your mild panic, you nodded and exited the lab, walking in silent tandem with Ace and Gaster.

 

Gaster led the two of you down the hall, his hands clasped neatly behind his back. You and Ace followed, making deliberate actions to not look at one another. The air was tense and awkward, and it was starting to smother you. So much for avoiding him.

 

Soon you reached a rather large set of double doors, and with a flick of his wrist, Gaster had summoned two punctured, disembodied hands to open the doors. You weren’t sure what part of the compound you were in, but it was significantly quieter here and you’d noticed it was fairly vacant.

 

As you moved through the doors and down the hall, the lights flickered on above you. You kept close to Gaster, your shoulder brushing his arm every so often. He looked down at you, a ghost of a smile crossing his face, “No need to be so tense, my dear. There is nothing to worry about.”

 

You cast him a glance before nodding, still deciding to stick close to him.

 

Finally, you were met with another set of double doors. The white hands swiftly opened these doors as well, giving you the ability to see the dark room inside. Gaster led you in, waving his hand as the lights flickered on.

 

You were in some kind of lab, and you wondered if it was Gaster’s personal one. He led the way to a large mahogany desk on the far left, and as you followed your eyes passed over several files and folders that had been strewn across the tables. Most of them were printed in normal English, but there were words and passages scribbled on them in a language that completely eluded you.

 

You absentmindedly picked up one of the pages, the odd language written gracefully in handwriting you knew had to belong to Gaster. The language was literally just a bunch of symbols, and the longer you looked the more you were reminded of some font you used to screw around with on the computer.

 

You felt a presence behind you as someone leaned over your shoulder. A familiar scent reached you and instantly your face turned red, your hands gripping tighter onto the paper.

 

“seems like he’s tryin’ to find a way to incorporate magic into healing…” Ace mumbled, more to himself than to you. He didn’t seem to mind the closeness now, when earlier he wanted nothing more than to avoid you.

 

You still wanted to avoid him, though, so you placed the notes back on the desk and hurried away, heart pounding heavily in your head. Gaster didn’t seem to notice the obvious tension as he was shuffling around some other papers and folders behind his desk when he absentmindedly waved you over.

 

Ace watched as you obediently padded over to the scientist, some form of bittersweet envy stirring in his rib cage. You had your back to him, brushing shoulders (well, shoulder to upper arm, Gaster was a tall monster) with Gaster.

 

“So, what’s up, Doc?” you asked, looking up at the tall monster.

 

Gaster adjusted his glasses back onto his face, which amused you since he didn’t have a nose, but he didn’t have to tape the glasses to his head like Sans did. He handed you three different folders, keeping two of them for himself. “I would like for you to read over those files in the order I gave them to you, my dear.”

 

Cocking a brow at him, you glanced up from the folders. Why did he bring you here to do this? You were Sans’ assistant, not Gaster’s. After a few moments, you nodded and sat yourself on a nearby desk. You placed the small stack of folders on the surface next to you.

 

You plucked the top one from the stack, noticing Sweets’ name printed on the label. Flipping open the tan folder, you were met with a page full of stats accompanied with a photo of the little skelley. Moving your mouth silently, you read over the information such as Sweets’ HoPe (HP), magic levels, soul power, etc… Most of the information was lost to you, though. You weren’t experienced in monster biology.

**HP: 21, ATK: 8, DEF: 2.**

 

Placing the folder down, you picked up the next one with Chief’s name on it. When you opened it, you were met with similar information, though Chief’s HP was way lower than Sweets’… He only had one. One HoPe. You creased your brow but continued to read the information, noticing how the levels of his magic were identical to Sweets’. The levels fluctuated a little from Sweets’, but they were mostly the same.

 

**HP: 1, ATK: 1, DEF: 1.**

Picking up the last folder, you flipped it open, Ace’s name popping out at you. You ignored how your heart picked up, forcing your eyes to stay on the page. Your eyes widened as you read over Ace’s HP, having to reread the number over and over again to wrap your head around it.

 

**HP: 333,333, ATK: 33,333, DEF: 33,333.**

 

Okay, you weren’t super intelligent when it came to monster stats. Every now and then you’d hear Undyne and Papyrus bantering about their own numbers, but it was all confusing to you. However, you knew that the higher the HP was, the stronger the monster. And the strongest monster you’d met was Gaster, though you couldn’t remember his HP.

 

Your eyes slowly landed on Ace, whom was turned away from you, studying something on a shelf. Was… Was he really that strong? Shaking your head lightly, you focused your attention back down to the paper, trying to ignore that outrageous number on the page. However, the longer you read, one more thing stood out to you.

 

Ace had two different levels of magic. One was identical to Sweets’ and Chief’s, save for a few fluctuations. The other was far higher, greatly overshadowing the first.

 

Just how strong was Ace?

 

You placed the folder down on the table before flicking your attention to Gaster, whom had been watching your reactions as you read through the files. He nodded to you as he came to stand next to the desk, handing you the last two folders.

 

“What are these for?”

 

“These,” he pointed to them, “are two unnamed files. The information in these files correlates to two monsters. What I would like for you to do is to match the three files I had given to you to these, keeping them as identical as possible. Do you understand?”

 

You slowly nodded, not entirely sure why he was wanting you to do this. You turned and sat cross legged on the desk, lining up the three named folders in front of you. Flipping open the first unnamed folder, you read over the information.

 

**HP: 1, ATK: 1, DEF: 1.**

Almost immediately you connected the similarities between this file and Chief’s, but decided to wait to make the choice. You placed the folder down above the row of files, placing the second unnamed folder in your lap. Opening the file, you did your best to hide your bewilderment as you read the numbers.

 

**HP: 666,666, ATK: 66,666, DEF: 66,666.**

Ho. Ly. Fuck.

 

Your head was starting to hurt. How could any monster even be that strong?? Why would any monster need to be that strong?!

 

“Are you alright, my dear?” Gaster questioned, placing a hand on your shoulder. You could feel how close he was to you and it only befuddled your sleep deprived mind. You raised a hand to your head, pinching the bridge of your nose slightly. You hoped you’d never run into this monster. Jesus…

 

Gaster questioned you again, his voice a little softer this time. You nodded, removing your glasses and rubbing at your tired eyes. “I’m alright… It’s just, that’s a lotta numbers for one monster.”

 

An amused chuckle rumbled through the monster’s chest, and you figured it was because of how dazed you sounded.

 

You placed your glasses back on your face, leaning over to match the numbers as close as you possibly could. You placed Chief’s file next to the first unnamed one, the stats matching almost perfectly. You took a moment to study Sweets’ stats, running through several possibilities in your head. The numbered stats were slightly different, but all in all he did match up with the first file more than the second one.

 

After matching Sweets’ file with the first unnamed folder, your eyes then settled on Ace’s file. You read over those numbers numerous times, and though he had levels that matched those of Sweets and Chief, he was more in tune with the second unnamed folder. You hesitated for a moment, eyes flicking back and forth between the two folders, before you firmly placed Ace’s with the second folder.

 

“Hmm,” Gaster nodded, “Interesting.”

 

You blinked and looked up at him. “What? What’s interesting?” You fumbled with the sleeve of your lab coat, suddenly nervous. “Did… Did I get something wrong?”

 

He placed a large hand on the top of your head, giving you a gentle smile. “No, no. You did just fine. Exceedingly well, actually. The conclusion you came to matches mine.”

 

“Uh, conclusion?”

 

He nodded to you before turning to wave Ace over, “As I was running the tests on the boys, I made an odd discovery.” He waited until Ace had joined before continuing, shifting out of the way so both of you could see what he was talking about.

 

Gaster gestured to the first unnamed folder, “This first folder is Sans’ information. All of his stats.” You winced. You never knew his HP was so low. “Now, we have come to the undeniable conclusion that the three skeleton monsters and Sans are all identical, yes?”

 

You cast a glance up to Ace, who met yours before looking away. There was something in his eyes that hardened as he looked back at the scientist, but you couldn’t place what.

 

Gaster didn’t seem to notice as he continued to ramble, “Well, the tests proved that connection on a magical level. However, as I was working the data, I discovered that Ace’s magic levels are different.”

 

You slowly nodded, trying to follow him, “Well, yeah… His stats are incredibly high… Higher than Sweets’ and Chief.”

 

A mischievous grin crossed Gaster’s face and he leaned closer to you, “And why do you think that is, my dear?”

 

You leaned away from him, your eyes widening slightly. “Um…”

 

Ace’s eyes were trained hard on the scientist, a feral growl threatening to build in his rib cage. The closer Gaster got to you the tenser Ace became. He knew what Gaster had discovered. He knew it the moment Gaster had walked into the lab this morning.

 

Gaster’s attention flicked up to Ace, his grin only growing as he straightened up. “Oh, would you like to fill in the blanks, Ace? You seem to think there are a few _holes_ in my discovery.” He held up a hand, holding his punctured palm out towards Ace.

 

You creased your brow. Gaster was making a pun? Right now? You weren’t really sure what do think or say at this point in time. Should you be intimidated, should you laugh, should you just get the fuck outta here? You liked that last option, but you were trapped in between two incredibly strong monsters.

 

“Uh, guys? Maybe we should just… I don’t know… Chill for a second? I’m seriously lost…”

 

Gaster gracefully snatched the second unnamed file from the table, holding it up in front of himself. “Then allow me to clear any confusion: These are my stats, my dear.”

 

You felt your heart drop into your gut. Gaster’s HP was 666,666?! “S-So, you’re… Holy. What.”

 

“he’s trying to say we share similar stats, sweetheart.”

 

You looked over your shoulder to Ace, raising a brow, “What does that mean?”

 

“Yes, Ace, what does that mean?”

 

An uncomfortable silence filled the room and Ace took in a deep breath. Well, now would be as good a time as any. Especially since Gaster had obviously already discovered what Ace wasn’t too keen on sharing.

 

“it means that,” Ace sighed, absentmindedly raising a hand to the back of his skull, “’m not just sans, sweetheart.”

 

What?

 

“What?”

 

He let out a bitter chuckle, “oh, come on, you can’t tell me you didn’t connect any dots, sweetheart.” Ace pointed to the crack that branched down into his grin, also showcasing the hole on his hand to you.

 

Remember when Alphys said you were oblivious?

 

You were starting to believe her now.

 

“Um… Sorry, Ace, I still don’t… Uh…”

 

Ace sighed again, becoming aggravated by the whole situation in general. He was fine with just having Gaster know, but you… Things with you were already complicated. No doubt you’d just find him more… Avoidable after this.

 

Ace moved to sit next to you on the desk, his hands laying limply in his lap. “y’know how sweets’ and chief’s universes are different, but they’re still sans?”

 

You nodded, scooting over slightly to give more space between the two of you. Gaster had fallen unexpectedly quiet, giving Ace the opportunity to explain.

 

Ace stared emptily in front of him, pausing to gather his words properly before continuing, “well, in my universe there was an… incident.”

 

You listened to Ace speak, hanging onto each word as he talked. In his universe, there was an incident… er… accident? Anyway, there was a situation where that universe’s Sans and Doctor Gaster were merged together. But everyone else just… Vanished. Papyrus, Undyne, everyone but Ace and that universe’s Frisk were left.

 

You noticed how he tried to dance around saying Frisk’s name too much, something like pain visible on his face. Your hand twitched slightly in your lap, and before you knew it you reached out and placed your hand on top of his. He stopped in mid-sentence, glancing up at you with yellow-tinted tears gather at the edges of his eye sockets.

 

You sucked in a breath, taking a moment to gather your own words. “You… You don’t have to talk about it… If it’s too hard for you to.”

 

Ace’s wary stare flicked between you and Gaster, and you felt him shift his hand to hold onto yours, but he didn’t say anything else. You offered him a soft smile before turning to look at the quiet scientist. “So… What does this mean?”

 

Gaster had his finger curled against his lips, thinking to himself before he responded. “Well, I would like to look more into this. If I am able to break apart the mixture on a magical level, maybe there could be a way to reverse the merging between the two of you.”

 

Ace blinked before staring at Gaster with wide eyes. “you… could you do that?”

 

“It could take some time, but it shouldn’t be impossible. That is, only if you would like to revert back to your normal self. Er, selves.”

 

You just silently watched the exchange, feeling Ace’s hand tighten around yours with his excitement. Ace’s face cracked into a grin, “yes! yes, doc, that would be- wow, man, that’d be great!”

 

Gaster agreed to assisting Ace in trying to revert him back to his normal self, and after asking you to keep this discovery between the three of you, finally dismissed you and Ace from his lab. Now, as you walked down the hall back to your lab, things were quiet between you.

 

You kept your hands linked behind your back, shuffling slowly down the hall, matching Ace’s leisurely pace. There was an obvious tension in the air, only increasing the awkwardness.

 

You cleared your throat, “Sorry.”

 

Ace cocked a brow bone at you, casting you a look out of the corner of his eye, “for what?”

 

“For Doctor Gaster. He can be… A bit excitable sometimes. He was actually kind of intimidating until he made that pun about, well…” You pointed to your hand, giving Ace a sheepish smile.

 

Ace chuckled, “nah, it’s fine. i think i could understand, considering the situation anyway.”

 

You nodded, happy that the tenstion was easing up a little bit. “Yeah, I guess so.”

 

The lab doors were coming into view, and Ace slowed his pace to a stop. You stopped a few feet ahead of him, tossing a questioning look over your shoulder. He avoided your gaze for a moment before he shuffled up next to you.

 

He stood quite close to you, but you didn’t feel as uncomfortable as before. “What’s up, Ace?”

 

Finally, his gaze met yours and he let out a sigh, “’m sorry, sweetheart.”

 

You flushed slightly, “Um… For what?”

 

A dust of yellow crossed the skeleton’s face, “for, eh, last night…”

 

“Oh.”

 

Well, so much for the tension going away.

 

You shuffled back and forth on your feet, trying to come up with something to say. Should you say it was fine? Don’t worry about it?

 

“i was… really outta line,” Ace mumbled, pulling you out of your thoughts.

 

You flushed again, “Well, it’s… Uh, it’s alright? I mean, it wasn’t like… horrible.”

 

Ace snorted, the yellow increasing on his face. You were a blushing, bumbling mess and he was laughing about it, skull yellow as he struggling to find his words.

 

After a few moments of his laughter, a grin threatened to cross your lips. His laughter was kind of contagious, and soon a few giggles of your own fluttered through your chest. Your giggles mixed with his chuckles, and soon all the anxiousness and flustered feelings melted away.

 

Ace raised a hand to his skull, rubbing the back of it absentmindedly, “aw, jeez, what the fuck man,” he chuckled out.

 

The whole situation was kind of silly in the first place. The two of you literally lost sleep over this! You wiped a stray tear away from your eye, your giggles subsiding as your tummy started to hurt.

 

“HUMAN?”

 

You looked up, having crouched over slightly with your hands on your knees from your laughter, just as Sweets poked his head out into the hallway. He glanced at you, then to Ace (who’s face was still a pretty yellow as he tried to hide his laughter), and back to you with a concerned look.

 

“HUMAN, WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN? AND WHY IS YOUR FACE ALL RED?”

 

Another snort led to another round of giggles, leaving Sweets thoroughly confused. Was there a joke that he missed? You waved your hand dismissively, broken apologies leaving you as you tried to calm yourself down. “S-Sorry, sweetie.”

 

Sweets gave you a pout before marching out into the hallway. He didn’t like feeling left out, and something stirred deep in his chest as he reached out and sternly took your hand. For some reason he just wanted to get you away from Ace, knowing full well that he was the reason your face was all red.

 

He dragged you silently back into the lab and you stumbled after him, not casting another glance back to the skeleton in the hallway.


	11. In Which Sweets Learns About Breasts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Title says it all, bby ;)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As promised, new chapter! Just a warning, this chap gets a little sinful at the end. Enjoy~

“BUT WHY DO YOU HAVE TO GO?” Sweets questioned from his spot on your bed, a twinge of upset in his voice.

 

“Sweets, I don’t have to go,” you replied, hidden just from his sight within your closet, “I want to go. I won’t be gone forever.” You scrunched your brow together. Where was that shirt?

 

Sweets huffed and crossed his arms, “THEN WHY CAN’T I GO WITH YOU?”

 

You sighed, having already answered this question twice. “Because, it’s just going to be me and Sans tonight.”

 

The littlest skeleton whimpered, casting a look off to the side, “I’M SANS, TOO… SO I SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO GO.”

 

Eureka! You finally found it! Tugging the shirt from behind a winter coat, a triumphant smile graced your lips. You then held it up to your torso, shuffling over to look at yourself in the mirror. Perfect. “Sweets, turn around for a second.”

 

“WHAT? WHY?”

 

“Just do it. Please.”

 

Heaving a sigh, Sweets did as he was told and spun around, resting his mandible in his gloves hands. There was a heavy rock in his gut and it was weird. He didn’t like it. He would be fine if he was going as well, but the thought of you going somewhere… Alone with Sans… Just the two of you…

 

Oh! It made his magic bristle and churn!

 

It wasn’t fair! He wanted to be alone with you, too!

 

Sweets cast a look over his shoulder, his cheekbones dusted bright blue as he caught sight of your bare back. Uh oh. You weren’t done changing just yet…

 

Sweets gulped, his throat suddenly tight. He… He should look away. This was wrong, he knew it was! He was peeping on you! This wasn’t what a hero was supposed to do!

 

But he couldn’t bear to tear his eyes away.

 

You huffed, fingers fiddling with the buttons that refused to cooperate and Sweets was entranced. Oh, stars… He shuddered, watching as your shoulder blades maneuvered smoothly beneath your skin. His breathing started to quicken and he was sure you could hear his magic swirling against his bones.

 

You were moving again, slipping your arms into the sleeves, tugging it slowly up and draping it on your shoulders. You twisted your arms behind you, attempting to re-button the shirt in the back. After struggling with the third button, you sighed. “Hey, Sweets?”

 

Quickly he whipped himself back around, hoping you hadn’t caught him staring. You didn’t sound angry, so he figured he was in the clear.

 

That was, until you asked him one question.

 

“Could you help me? I can’t reach the rest of the buttons…”

 

He didn’t move.

 

He shouldn’t, wouldn’t, couldn’t move.

 

But you needed his help.

 

And he was a hero…

 

He slowly slipped off the bed, his eye sockets wide and face stark blue and thank the stars you were facing away from him. It seemed that each step he took around the bed towards you just got harder and harder.

 

“Oh,” you quipped, a little laugh trailing your words, “You probably can’t reach the top ones, huh?”

 

Sweets stopped just a foot behind you and he hated to admit you were right: He was far too short. But when you dropped down to your knees, you were the perfect height. As you tugged your hair out of the way, exposing your neck and shoulders Sweets stilled.

 

He could do this.

 

He could do this!

 

His hands were shaking as he raised them, starting at the lowermost button. Slipping the button through the hole was proving to be quite difficult, the extra fabric of his gloves getting in the way. He scrunched his brow bone, his hands shaking more and more.

 

He huffed and pulled the offending gloves from his hands, flexing his phalanges while he tried to calm himself. He successfully stopped the shaking, moving from the bottom button up to the next.

 

Finally he’d reached the last button, ending at the collar that wrapped delicately around your neck. “T-THERE,” he squeaked, mentally cursing his stutter.

 

You smiled, slipping your hair back over your shoulder. “Thank you!” You chuckled and swiveled around, staying on your knees in front of him. Sweets went rigid as you took his skull in your hands, pressing a gentle kiss to the bridge of his nose bone.

 

“H-HUMAN?”

 

“I know you’re upset that you can’t go tonight,” you started, your voice soft as you ran your thumb over his cheekbone, “But I promise I’ll make it up to you, okay?”

 

Sweets couldn’t bring himself to say anything, and you took his silence as him still being upset about you leaving. You sighed, wrapping your arms around him and pulling him into a hug. The little skeleton stumbled, eye sockets going wide as his face was pressed into your chest. Your soft, soft chest…

 

Why was it so soft? And… Squishy? He liked it, though, and couldn’t stop himself from nuzzling into the soft warmth. His little hands clasped onto your shirt as he fixed himself into your lap, clinging to you like a koala.

 

A little chuckle left you and you leaned back, bringing Sweets with you as you laid out on your floor. You rested your arms around his back, absentmindedly fiddling with his blue bandanna. “How about… Tomorrow we go and look for stuff for your room. Just you and me, huh?”

 

He loved the sound of that… Just you and him. Sweets turned his skull to look up at you, preparing himself to say something when there was a knock at your door. You sat up, giving the little skelley a soft smile before you pressed another kiss to his forehead.

 

“I’ll be back later, okay? You should see if Chief wants to come over, maybe you guys could watch a movie or something.” Bringing him with you, you stood to your feet and Sweets instantly clung to you.

 

“DON’T GO,” he mumbled, “PLEASE?”

 

You pulled your mouth into your cheek, Sweets’ newfound clinginess throwing you for a loop. As you neared your bed you managed to pry his arms from around your neck and placed him on the soft mattress.

 

He refused to look you in the eye, crossing his arms sternly across his chest.

 

You sighed, “Be good, okay?”

 

As soon as he heard your door click closed, he could feel the sting of stubborn tears approaching. Why didn’t you want to stay with him? Why couldn’t he go with you?? Ooh, it just wasn’t fair! None of this was fair!

 

Huffing a childish sigh, he threw himself back down onto the bed, keeping his arms crossed as he glared at the ceiling.

 

Fine, he’d just wait for you to get back home. Then he’d have you all to himself for the rest of the night. That realization brought blue to his cheek bones, but he couldn’t help but smile at it as well.

 

 

 

You locked your door behind you, your brow pulled together as you sighed.

 

“what’sa matter?” Sans asked from behind you, picking up on your odd mood almost immediately.

 

You adjusted your purse on your shoulder, tossing your keys inside as you turned to face him. “Sweets wanted me to stay home for some reason. I feel maybe he’s getting a little homesick.” The two of you made your way down to where Papyrus’ red convertible was waiting, the engine purring softly. “Woah, you got Pap to lend you his car?”

 

Sans shrugged, “eh, lend, borrow, take the keys without him knowing… whatever you wanna call it.”

 

You gasped, “Sans! You did NOT steal your brother’s car!”

 

Another shrug and a grin was all you got as an answer and you just sighed. “It’s gonna suck if the cops show up on our date to arrest you for grand theft auto, Sans. Just saying.”

 

“oh so you think this is a date, huh?”

 

You cocked a brow, your hand stilling on the car. The longer Sans grinned at you the more you felt your face flush, your eyes slowly beginning to narrow. You could tell Sans was enjoying this as he slipped into the driver’s seat, making himself comfortable.

 

“you gonna get in, or would you rather walk to the restaurant?”

 

“I hate you.”

 

 

 

  
Soft.

 

Soft and squishy.

 

Sweets stared at the ceiling, concentration etched on his face. Why were you so soft? Well, aside from your skin. Skin was usually soft, but why were you so squishy? You were especially squishy in the chest area. Was it some kind of protection, like armor?

 

He shook his head. No, that didn’t make any sense. Why would armor be squishy? That could hardly protect you from anything!

 

He needed help.

 

Professional help.

 

 

 

“DOCTOR ALPHYS!” Sweets declared, as if Alphys didn’t know who she was already.

 

The yellow monster winced and held her phone at a distance, Sweets’ voice booming through the receiver. After a moment she brought it back to her face, “H-Hello, Sweets.”

 

“DOCTOR ALPHYS!” he cried again, “I AM IN NEED OF YOUR ASSISTANCE!”

 

Her assistance? Alphys adjusted her glasses back up onto her snout, clearing her throat before she spoke. “What can I h-help you with?”

 

Sweets was silent on the other end, but Alphys was patient and gave him time to get his words together. Stars knew that she understood it was difficult sometimes.

 

“UM… HOW… HOW MUCH DO YOU KNOW ABOUT HUMAN STUFF?”

 

“Human stuff?”

 

“L-LIKE… BODIES AND STUFF.”

 

She wasn’t really understanding his question. Human bodies? Like biology? “Umm… Well, a lot? I t-think… Why?”

 

Sweets made a sound like he was mulling over something before he asked a question that made Alphys fidget. “WHAT ARE THE SQUISHY THINGS?”

 

“The… The squishy things?”

 

“YOU KNOW,” Sweets’ voice lowered a little, “THE SQUISHY CHEST THINGYS.”

 

“Squishy chest th- D-Do you mean breasts??”

 

“IS THAT WHAT THEY ARE CALLED?” He fell silent for a moment before piping up with another question, “WHAT ARE THEY FOR?”

 

Alphys was a bumbling, yellow mess as she sunk down into her seat. Where was Sweets getting all these questions? Why was he asking her of all people???

 

“ARE THEY USED FOR PROTECTION?”

 

“W-Well, no-“

 

“DO… ARE THEY MAGICAL?”

 

Alphys snorted. “W-Well-“

 

“BUT, DOCTOR ALPHYS!”

 

“Yes, Sweets?”

 

“THEY’RE SOFT … WHY ARE THEY SO SOFT?”

 

Alphys laughed a little, “Sweets, would you like for me to explain what b-breasts are for?”

 

“YES, PLEASE.”

 

 

 

“so, horror movie or romcom?”

 

You scrunched up your nose, “I wouldn’t want to waste my money on another romantic comedy… They’re so predictable.”

 

Sans gasped, “are not!” He placed a bony hand over his chest. “i find them to be rather _humerus_.”

 

Suppressing a groan, you walked up to the counter, speaking to the bored looking woman behind the glass. Heaving a heavy sigh, she droned, “How may I help you this evening?”

 

You felt Sans saunter up next to you, but the woman didn’t even seem to notice. Smiling sweetly, you pulled out your wallet, “Yes, hi, I need two tickets to,” you leaned back to read the title of the movie you’d want to waste twenty dollars on the most, “Um, ‘Revenge of the Undead 2’, please?”

 

You handed over the appropriate cash to the woman as she processed the sale when Sans spoke up, “good choice, babe, i hear it’s a real _bone rattler_.”

 

You sighed to suppress the chuckle in the back of your throat. “Sans, please.”

 

“yeah, apparently it’ll chill you to the _bone_.”

 

“Sans-“

 

“insert terrible skeleton pun here.”

 

Cracking a grin, you graciously took the tickets from the irritated looking woman and pulled your skeletal companion inside by his hood. “I hate you.”

 

“you love me.”

 

 

  
Breasts.

 

Sweets narrowed his sockets at his phone, scrolling down the webpage called ‘Wikipedia’.

 

“SO… THEY MAKE MILK? LIKE… MILK MILK?” Sweets creased his brow bone as he read the definition. “OH! SO MALES HAVE THEM, TOO?!”

 

Sweets was still confused, though. He… He liked your breasts. He liked hugging you and nuzzling into them… Why wasn’t there anything about that on here?

 

Alphys was helpful enough, but when he asked about touching them she became a sputtering mess, immediately hanging up the phone. Why was she being so strange?

 

The sound of the front door opening caused Sweets to sit up straight. Were you home already? Oh, good! You could answer his questions! Slipping from the bed, he pocketed his phone and darted from the room.

 

He skidded into the living room, stars in his eyes as he called out, “HUMAN! I HAVE MANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU MUST ANSWER!”

 

He stopped in his tracks when his gaze landed on Ace, instantly crossing his arms over his chest.

 

Ace flashed him a lazy grin, “heya, little man.”

 

Sweets pouted, obviously unhappy with Ace’s presence. “HELLO, SIR ACE. WHAT CAN I HELP YOU WITH?”

 

Ace plopped down on the sofa, making himself comfortable while Sweets stood a good bit away. “ah, nothin’. sweet cheeks just asked me to check up on ya.”

 

“SWEET CHEEKS?” Sweets clenched his fists down by his sides, puffing up his chest. “SHE HAS A NAME, YOU KNOW!”

 

Ace chuckled, “funny. she said the same thing to me last night.”

 

Sweets felt an odd twist in his rib cage, a bitterness he wasn’t used to. He didn’t like the idea of Ace alone with you, either… “WELL, I AM FINE ON MY OWN.”

 

Ace raised a brow bone, Sweets’ odd behavior throwing him off. But, hey, if he wanted to be by himself, Ace understood. He stood back up, “i gotcha. well, shout if ya need me.”

 

‘HARDLY LIKELY,’ Sweets thought, watching as Ace left just as quickly as he’d come.

 

Marching over to the loveseat, the littlest skelly sat down, intent on waiting for your return.

 

 

  
It was late when you returned home, well past eleven thirty. You said your goodbye to Sans as you slowly entered your apartment, locking the door behind you. Felix trotted up to you, chittering and chirping up at you. Scooping him up into your arms, you smiled and scratched him under his chin.

 

You were happy. The date with Sans had gone smoothly. Not that it shouldn’t have, but there was that one time… Let’s just say, you two are banned from ever going bowling again.

 

“HUMAN?”

 

You jumped slightly, eyes flicking up to the sleepy looking skeleton on the loveseat. He looked blearily at you, his clothes crinkled from how he was lying on the couch. Felix leapt down from your grasp, darting off somewhere in the darkness of your apartment.

 

“Hey, sweetie,” you said as you neared him, trying to keep your voice soft, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you.”

 

Sweets rubbed at one of his sockets, sitting up fully before reaching out to you. You inwardly squealed, he was just too freaking cute! You scooped him up into your arms and he clung to you, legs wrapped around your waist.

 

“Ready to go to bed, Hero?”

 

He nodded against your shoulder, nuzzling deeper into your neck as you carried him to your bedroom. Once you laid him down, you swiftly moved to change into some comfortable clothes to sleep in, settling for a tank top and loose shorts.

 

Sweets drifted between being awake and asleep, but he was conscious enough to register when you slipped into bed with him. He snuggled up into you, sleepiness beginning to wane as he registered what exactly he was nuzzling into.

 

Your soft, squishy, warm breasts.

 

Oh, stars, were they wonderfully comfortable.

 

A soft chuckle rumbled through your chest and you slowly wrapped your arms around him. A tired yawn slipped through your lips and gently you nuzzled your face into the top of his skull.

 

Soon he could hear your deep, even breaths as you feel into an easy slumber. Sweets was able to just feel your warmth beneath his bones and it brought a bright blue to his face. It was now or never…

 

Slowly, so tantalizingly slowly, Sweets brought his hand around from where he wrapped it around you. His eyes lights illuminated the soft tones of your skin, the swell of your full breasts visible over the collar of your tank top.

 

Flicking his eye lights between your face and down to his hands, he confirmed that you were indeed asleep. Taking in a shaky breath and holding it, he placed his tiny hands on just the top of the swell of your breasts.

 

You twitched just a bit, bringing Sweets to a full freeze. Oh no, were you waking up?? He focused on your face, hoping that your eyes wouldn’t open.

 

Luckily, they didn’t and your breathing evened out again.

 

Gulping, Sweets looked back down to your chest. His fingers began to gently knead into your soft flesh, just barely touching the skin itself as your shirt shielded him from doing so. Stars, they were marvelous, filling his little hands just right. It was-

 

What was that?

 

A lithe, little sound swam past your lips.

 

_He wanted to make you do it again._

 

Sweets kneaded his hands into your chest, working in a circular motion, watching your face with unadulterated wonder. You wormed around under his touch, subconsciously pushing your body more into him. A broken moan tumbled from your parted mouth, your brow creased in the middle.

 

Sweets could feel his body warming up considerably, and that only increased when one of your supple breasts popped free of your thin shirt. He snatched his hand away, afraid the action would wake you. You relaxed once more, however your breathing was labored.

 

He looked down to your exposed bosom, the sight almost causing him to salivate. His ecto tongue tossed around behind his teeth, poking itself on his sharpened canines. Stars, what was happening to him?

 

Without thinking, Sweets ducked his skull down to your chest, tongue darting out of his mouth. He gently ran it over your soft skin, bringing a shaking tremor and moan from you. He licked lower and lower, taking your breast into his mouth once he reached your nipple.

 

A sharp gasp escaped you as you scrabbled for the skeleton in your sleep. You thrashed momentarily until you flipped onto your back, bringing Sweets with you. It was a good thing Sweets didn’t need to breathe as he shoved his face deep into your breast.

 

He pulled away, his tongue swirling around your sensitive bud before he sat up. Straddling you, he hungrily eyed your flushed face, a kind of primal urge rising in his chest.

 

He wanted you.

 

That realization hit him like a ton of bricks.

 

He wanted you, so badly. He didn’t just want to touch you, he wanted all of you.

 

But he didn’t know how or why he was feeling this way. Where was all of these… New thoughts were coming from.

 

Sweets panicked as you stirred underneath him, soft groans escaping you. He quickly threw himself down onto the bed, pulling the blanket up and over his skull. He faced away from you, eye sockets wide and face blue.

 

He felt you sit up behind him, and you drearily rubbed at your eyes. Glancing down, you flushed and fixed your shirt back up over your exposed… Assets. You glanced over to the Sweets-sized lump next to you. “Sweets?”

 

‘DON’T ANSWER, DON’T MOVE, PRETEND YOU ARE ASLEEP, SANS!’

 

“Sweets, you awake?”

 

‘NOPE. NOPE. NU UH.’

 

After waiting a few moments and getting no response, you shrugged and snuggled back down under the blankets. Sweets inwardly screamed as you wrapped your arms and pulled him back against your soft breasts.

 

Ho boy.

 

This was going to be a long night.


	12. *In Which Sweets Has Either a Bad Time or a Good Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He isn't so sure yet.
> 
> ♪~ ᕕ(ᐛ)ᕗ

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS CHAPTER IS TOTALLY OPTIONAL. THIS WILL HAVE LITTLE TO NO IMPACT ON THE STORYLINE, but is canon. Therefore, if you would rather skip the sin chapters, I will mark them with an asterisk.

Oh, stars… Was this really happening?

 

“Sansy~”

 

Sweets could feel his magic pounding in his skull, his skull flushed a bright cornflower blue. Beads of sweat were beginning to build up on his forehead as he pressed further back into the wall of pillows behind him.

 

A flirtatious giggle caused him to go rigid as his pursuer honed in on him. He could feel the bed dip, his soul beating faster and faster. He was cornered, pinned up against an immovable wall.

 

You smiled sweetly at him, tilting your head to the side while you gazed up at him through your thick lashes. “Sansy, Sansy, Sansy~” You taunted him, your voice light and sweet and sing-songy.

 

“MNH,” Sweets gulped, his hands twisted in the sheets beneath him, “H-HUMAN, W-W-WHAT ARE YOU D-DOING?”

 

You inched further, crawling slowly on your hands and knees. Sweets couldn’t choose what he should focus on. This was all so confusing. First he noticed the way you pulled your lower lip between your teeth, nibbling on the pink _soft_ flesh. Then, he would look up into your eyes. They were glazed over, a distant look in them, but they eyed him so hungrily. And then there was what you were wearing.

 

It was so… _Revealing._ You wore a short, short dress, the same color blue as his face, and it was decorated with frills and bows. The puffy sleeves slipped down over your shoulders, leaving almost nothing to the imagination as your breasts threatened to pop out as well.

 

While he was mesmerized by your features, you slyly placed a hand on his knee. He squeaked, blinking back up to your face. He was trembling now, the blue lights of his eyes dilating as your hand slowly began to creep upwards.

 

“Won’t you play with me?”

 

The little skeleton couldn’t focus on your words, your hand taking his full attention as it reached the point where his femur connected with his pelvis. He could feel the feather light touches through his trousers and each one was electric.

 

A strangled squeak caught between his teeth when you leaned up over him, your cool breath caressing his flushed skull as you giggled, “Play with me, Sansy~”

 

Sweets trembled as you slowly untucked his shirt from his pants, slyly running your hand over the base of his spine. You leaned forward even more, giving the skeleton the ability to see straight down your dress. His hands twisted with the desire to touch you but he fought it, biting back any lewd want to the back of his mind.

 

But _damn were you making that difficult._

A tiny moan spilled through his teeth as you began to drag your nails over his bones, hitting those sensitive spots just between his spine and pelvis. He snapped his sockets shut, his whole body feeling tense and aching. He’d never felt this way before… Like something was burning inside him, a seemingly insatiable itch he couldn’t pinpoint.

 

Your other hand lifted his chin, forcing him to look straight into your eyes. “H-HUMAN,” his voice came out as a moan, a small whine tailing the end of it.

 

You hummed, pleased with the way the little skeleton was reacting to your attentions. “Did you know that you’re my favorite, Sansy?”

 

Another squeak left him as you began to slowly massage the curves of his pelvis. He was borderline panting now, squirming under your heavenly touches. His nonexistent throat was dry and rough when he asked, “I-I AM?”

 

Scooting closer, you nudged his legs open and situated yourself between them. He was forced to look up at you, considering he was so small, but at this moment he really couldn’t care less. Your lower hand began to travel north, your fingers dragging along his bottom ribs. Your tongue darted out, sweeping across your lips before you answered, “Oh, yes. You’re so brave,” your fingers slipped in the spaces between his ribs, “And cute,” you brought his face up to meet yours, your lips hovering just centimeters away from his mouth, “And I just want you so _bad,_ Sansy.”

 

You didn’t even give him the chance to speak before you hungrily pressed your lips to his teeth, enticing him enough to open his jaw. Humming again, your warm tongue darted inside while your hands busied themselves with roaming the little skeleton’s body. You dominated him with your touches, leaving him a panting mess beneath you.

 

His eyes were wide at first, shocked that this was even happening, but soon they screwed themselves shut. His hands scrabbled for purchase against your body, digging his phalanges into the front of your frilly dress.

 

Tucking your legs beneath you, you hoisted him up onto your lap which caused him to squeak. Now he was just a little taller than you, so you had to tilt your head up to keep him locked in your heated kiss. Your soft tongue battled with his, suckling and fighting to get those sweet sounds from him.

 

It was so hot. Stars, was it hot. Sweets panted harder, his rib cage heaving while you administered your experienced advances. Wrapping your arms around his form, you lead him to grind himself against your body. A broken moan spilled from his mouth, bringing a wicked little smile from you. You did it again, choosing to leave his mouth and attaching your lips to his perfect little neck.

 

You trailed your warm tongue up the side of his neck, causing him to squirm against you. His hands landed on your bare shoulders, gripping them tightly as you ran your tongue down over his partially exposed clavicle.

 

“Hmmm,” you mused, beginning to tug his shirt upwards, “I think this is in the way.” You glanced up at him, your own flushed face being the cause for his breath to hitch. “Can I take it off, Sansy?”

 

Not trusting himself to speak, he nodded, raising his arms above his head. He wouldn’t say it out loud, but he wanted you to touch him. God, he wanted you to touch him _everywhere!_ Grinning, you swiftly pulled his shirt over his head, tossing it somewhere off to the side. Almost immediately your hands were on him again, accompanied by your lips on his mouth again.

 

Your left hand busied itself with exploring the inside of his chest cavity, you happily discovering that the flat inside of his sternum was especially sensitive. He borderline squealed as you ran your index finger over it, which simply lead you to do it again. Over and over, until his words were nothing but a jumbled mess of mumbling and pleading.

 

Your right hand traveled south, patiently playing with the hem of his pants. Your fingers trickled down over the ever growing bulge beneath the stiff fabric. Pressing the palm of your hand to the bulge, you were pleased when he ground himself up against you.

 

Sweets was beginning to become overstimulated, all the lewd and perverse desires building up inside of him. It was becoming too much, too heavy for him. Involuntary tears sprung to his sockets as he panted against you, pressing his bare ribs against your soft body.

 

Pulling away from him, your eyes gazed over his flushed and trembling form. His hands rested atop your mostly revealed breasts, shaking against the stark warmth of your skin. “(N-NAME)…”

 

You bit at your lip, pressing your hand harder against his arousal. “Yes, Sansy?”

 

He bit back a cry, a lewd moan taking its place as you teased him more. “I-I… I NEED…”

 

Giggling flirtatiously, you did it again, earning you another string of moans. “What do you need?” Keeping him occupied, you swiftly unbuttoned his trousers. “Go on, tell me what you need.”

 

He had a faraway look on his face, the blue plips of light in his sockets transforming into adorable little upside down hearts. Large tears gathered at the edges of his eye sockets, accompanied perfectly with his flushed skull. “IT… IT’S SO… HOT,” he panted, “PLEASE… PLEASE…”

 

Tugging his trousers down as far as you could with him on your lap, you smiled up at him. A bright blue illuminated the space between your bodies and Sweets went to look down. Your lips met his mouth once more as you wrapped your hand around his painfully hard erection.

 

And he literally _squealed._ It was mostly incoherent, but your name was thrown in there somewhere. You kept your touches light, but even your gentleness was still intense for the little skeleton. You slowly began to pump him, cooing at him softly as his moans and cries began to grow louder.

 

Stars, it felt like he was on fire. Every bit of him burned and tingled and it was so addicting. Every touch you gave him was electric, and he just wanted more and more of it. It was all so much, so much and _so good!_ His body began to move on its own, thrusting upwards into your hand.

 

“That’s it, Sansy,” you praised, tucking your face against the side of his neck, dragging your warm tongue upwards to his jaw, “Good boy. Doesn’t it feel good?”

 

“Y-YES!” He braced himself by gripping onto your shoulders, giving him a better position to grind himself up against your hand. Something was building up inside, almost like his magic was a bomb. But it all felt so good! He quickened his pace, the huge tears cascading down his cheekbones as he screwed his eye sockets shut.

 

And then _you_ began to moan. It was soft at first, and he almost thought he was imagining it. But then his name tumbled from your lips and it was all he could do to not fall apart. He didn’t know why you were making those sounds, but he wouldn’t complain as it just added fuel to his fire.

 

Moving your hand with his thrusts, Sweets continued to feel _something_ inside himself build up. It was delicate but so intense and it just pushed him forward.

 

Oh, stars. He jutted his hips up faster and faster, clawing for whatever he was reaching for. Your moans and praises pushed him, his own cries mirroring the pleasure that was building up inside him.

 

Almost…

 

You panted up at him, lust hazing over your eyes, “Sans!”

 

Almost.

 

His little hands squeezed at your shoulders, shouting your own name as his whole body tensed.

 

**_Almost!_ **

 

 

 

 

 

 

Snapping his eyes open, Sweets stared out into the dark. Well, it wasn’t really that dark. His face was bright enough to light up the whole bedroom! The sound of his magic coursing through his body was almost deafening and he felt uncomfortably hot.

 

Was… Was that all a dream?!

 

Looking down at himself, he tried to ignore the sweat that had built up all over his body, and deduced that it was indeed just a dream. He still had all his clothes on! But… There _was_ something that he couldn’t ignore.

 

Arms, _your arms,_ were still wrapped snugly around him as you slept, you keeping his body tucked perfectly up against yours. Suddenly, flashes from his lewd dream flew past his eyes and he stilled. His magic began coursing through him and no matter what he did, he couldn’t stop it.

 

‘NO,’ he chided himself, ‘NO! CALM DOWN! IT WAS JUST A DREAM!’

 

Gently, he began to wiggle himself out of your arms. Luckily, as he had discovered already, you were a heavy sleeper. He slipped himself down onto the floor, debating whether or not he should just sleep there for the rest of the night.

 

Because there was no way he’d ever get to sleep lying next to you.

 

‘WELL,’ he sighed, trying to calm down his magic, ‘THE COUCH IS COMFORTABLE…’

 

Couch it was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *douses self in holy water* FATHER, FORGIVE ME, FOR I HAVE SINNED!


	13. In Which Chad Meets Gaster

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You find Chad, who meets Gaster, gets mortified by Sans, and witnesses an odd confession. Or two.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First and foremost, I want to apologize for my sudden absence. A lot has been happening in my life, some good and some bad. I've been in kind of a dark place for a while, and it's been hard to find time to sit and write. I even had to play Undertale again to remember where my passion is. Secondly, I want to thank all of you for being so very patient with me. I love each and every one of you!

When you woke up alone the next morning, you were confused. You distinctly remember snuggling an adorable little skeleton while you fell asleep…

 

Now where was he?

 

Slipping from your warm sheets, you made your way to your cracked door. Maybe he’d gotten up early? You crossed your arms over your body, slightly chilly as you headed out into the hallway.

 

It was quiet in your apartment, so quiet that you were about to start panicking. Sweets wasn’t usually one to be silent, and if he’d already gotten up shouldn’t there be some evidence of that?

 

Luckily, your panicking didn’t last long as you neared your couch, finding your missing skeleton sound asleep. He was snuggled up with one of your hoodies, a small blanket draped over him. You tilted your head to the side.

 

Why in the world was he out here?

 

Leaning down, you scooped the snoozing skeleton into your arms. Almost instantly he cuddled up into you, his sleepy eye sockets cracking open. He glanced around for a moment, almost as if he didn’t know where he was.

 

You chuckled, catching his attention. “Heya, sleepyhead.”

 

Sweets stared up at you for a moment, and with each passing second his skull grew a brighter shade of blue. His body went rigid in your arms. “H-HUMAN!”

 

A concerned chuckle escaped you, thrown off by his odd behavior. “Yes? You okay?”

 

He seemed flustered, squirming uncomfortably in your grasp while he attempted to avoid looking at you. His actions from the previous night along with his… _Lewd_ dream had flooded back to him all too quickly, only succeeding in deepening the cyan on his face.

 

“Sweets?” You furrowed your brow, growing more concerned at his actions. His little form was growing warm to the touch. Raising a hand, you gently felt his forehead and found it equally as hot. Could skeletons get sick? “Sweetie, are you feeling okay?”

 

“MMNH, I-I AM FINE!” He swatted your hand away weakly, screwing his sockets closed as he turned away. He then began to try and wiggle out of your grasp, kicking his feet until you successfully freed him. He landed on the floor, even going as far as inching away from you.

 

“Sweets, what are you-“

 

“ACTUALLY, HUMAN, I AM NOT FEELING WELL!” He avoided looking at you, his skull lined with sweat. “NOPE, NOT FEELING MY BREAST! UH, _BEST!_ NOT FEELING… MY… I DON’T FEEL GOOD!”

 

And with that, the littlest skeleton with the brightest blue face scurried down the hall, promptly locking himself in your bathroom.

 

You were left, flabbergasted and perplexed, in the middle of your living room.

 

What just happened?

 

\---

 

You changed from your pajamas into a nice skirt and blouse, almost finished pinning your hair up when the door to the bathroom creaked open. Turning slightly, you cast a concerned look over your shoulder as Sweets cautiously looked out into the hall.

 

You pushed the last pin into your bun before you stepped towards the bathroom. “Sweets?”

 

A startled squeak and a door slamming back shut was your response. You sighed, dropping your hands to your sides. You neared the door, knocking gently.

 

“Sweets, is everything alright?”

 

You could hear Sweets pressing up against the other side of the door, but other than that you received no response. Nibbling on your lip, you knocked again.

 

“Hey, you’re really worrying me. At least tell me what’s wrong?”

 

Sweets did his best to keep his harsh breathing silent, pressing himself against the door in an attempt to keep you out (which would prove to be futile considering he was so small and light). His body was on fire, his skull flushed a bright blue as your soft voice called his name again.

 

_“Sansy~”_ you called. Not the real you, of course, but the dream you. The you that pinned him and touched him and _begged for him-_

Shaking the lewd thoughts away, Sweets crossed his arms over his ribcage. He couldn’t face you! He was too ashamed!

 

“Sweets… Are you honestly not feeling well?” you questioned, your voice muffled by the door.

 

Aha! He could just play sick! He didn’t feel good about lying to you, but what other choice did he have? You knocked again, causing him to straighten up. “Y-YES! I APOLOGIZE, HUMAN, FOR I AM NOT FEELING AS MAGNIFICENT AS USUAL!” He then added a cough, one that was so obviously fake, for good measure.

 

“Wait, Sweets, why don’t you come out here and I can get you some medicine? Or some tea?”

 

The doorknob began to turn and Sweets squealed, rushing to lock it. “NO! NO NO! THAT IS NOT NECESSARY!” Another fake cough. “HUMAN, YOU MUST GO WITHOUT ME TODAY!”

 

A sigh could be heard from your side of the door, and Sweets cringed at your disappointed tone, “Oh… Okay. I’ll be back in a little bit… Call me if you need anything, okay?”

 

“OF COURSE!”

 

He heard your footsteps recede, your soft voice say goodbye to Felix, and then the door opening and closing.

 

Then, silence.

 

\---

 

You sighed as you locked the door behind you, your thoughts on Sweets’ odd behavior. You didn’t want to leave him alone, especially if he was actually sick. Adjusting your purse on your shoulder, you turned to Chief’s door, giving it a loud knock.

 

After waiting for a few moments, the door creaked open, revealing a rather sleepy looking skeleton. He blinked up at you, scratching the back of his skull as he yawned. “heya, girly.”

 

You gave him a small smile, “Hey, Chief. Sorry for waking you…”

 

“s’no problem,” he leaned up against the doorframe, “much rather get woken up by you than pap any day. he never lets me sleep in.”

 

You gave a small chuckle; happy you could give Chief some kind of reprieve from whatever world he came from. Taking a tiny step towards him, you spoke in a low voice, “Chief, I need your help.”

 

He cocked his skull to the side, signaling for you to continue.

 

“It’s Sweets,” you started, fumbling absentmindedly with your purse, “He’s acting strange. Yesterday he was so upset about not being able to go with Sans and me, but today… He’s locked himself in the bathroom. He says he isn’t feeling well, but I’m worried…”

 

“you want me to keep an eye on him?” Chief finished for you.

 

Smiling, you nodded. “If you wouldn’t mind? Just to make sure he’s okay…”

 

“you have my word, girly.” Chief raised his left hand in a mock oath. “i solemnly swear that he’s got the best babysitter.”

 

“Thank you,” you pulled the shorter skeleton into a brief hug, to which he flushed at. He still wasn’t used to physical affection, after all. “Call me if you need anything, okay?”

 

“yes maam.”

 

You waved to Chief as you left down the hallway, feeling slightly better. Maybe he could figure out what has your adorable little skeleton all in a fuss?

 

\---

 

The drive to the mall was undoubtedly quiet, but that didn’t bother you. There weren’t many people out today, most likely because it was still rather early in the day. If you were lucky, you could beat the lunch rush!

 

Locking your car, you dropped your keys down into your purse and started towards the large building. You hummed a little tune, turning to head to the second story when your eye caught a familiar store off to the left.

 

The Toy Barrel.

 

Your heart bristled as the memories of the event that took place only a few days ago resurfaced. Your hand had healed rather nicely, it was only a little sore between your knuckles now, but a big part of you still remained angry.

 

Out of all of the people that were here that day, why did only one human try to stop the obvious injustice that was being done? What was it about conflict that caused humans to do nothing?

 

Before you knew it, you were walking towards the small toy store. Your footsteps echoed out, mingling with the distant music and scarce conversations but you stilled as you reached the glass door.

 

A familiar young man along with an unfamiliar older woman were standing and arguing behind the front counter. You recognized the man as the one who tried to call the police and help Sweets as he was snatched from the mall, his eye still rather bruised and purple from his own altercation. You couldn’t remember his name… Or had you never caught it? That whole day was a blur.

 

You gasped slightly when the older woman reached out and snatched the young man’s name tag from his uniformed shirt before pointing out of the store. You could barely make out the words, “Get out!”

 

Was… Was he being fired?

 

You glanced around the toy store, noticing a few other employees and a few customers looking on with either pity or disgust.

 

What on earth was going on??

 

You stepped out of the way as the young man rushed to exit the store, barely casting you a glance as he stormed off down the main corridor of the mall. His face was flushed pure red and it was obvious he was trying his best to not cry and you instantly felt bad for him.

 

You knew his ‘release’ from his job probably was partially fault to the incident a few days ago. Casting one more look into the toy store, you hurried off after him.

 

“Hey!”

 

He didn’t stop, his hands shoved deep into his pockets as he stormed away.

 

“Excuse me!” you called out, trying your best to close the distance between you. “Sir!”

 

The young man stopped, casting a look over his shoulder at you. At first he eyed you apprehensively before a wave of recognition washed over his face.

 

You put on a smile as you stopped in front of him, “Oh, good, you remember me!”

 

He shrugged, “It’s kinda hard to forget a chick who walks around with a buncha skeletons, I suppose.”

 

You winced a little bit, “Yeah, I guess so…” You stuck your hand out to him, your smile never faltering, “I’m (Name). I never got to properly thank you for helping the other day.”

 

He eyed your hand for a moment before looking back up at your face, almost as if he was searching for something. Slowly, he extended his own hand, wrapping his fingers around your hand in a gentle handshake. A tiny smile threated to break out on his face, “Chad. And I didn’t… Really… Well, I didn’t do much.”

 

You scoffed, “Please! You tried, which counts.” Your hand tightened around his slightly, causing his face to flush the lightest shade of pink. “I really, really appreciate it, Chad.”

 

“U-Uh… W-W-Well…” His attention flicked between your still conjoined hands and your face, his face growing warmer by the second. “Um… A-Any time?”

 

Finally releasing your hand from his, you straightened up with a smile. “So… Uh, what happened back there? In the store?”

 

Chad seemed dazed for a moment, his hand still somewhat outstretched. After staying silent for too long, he shook his head as if your question had just registered. “Oh, well… Not everyone is as grateful as you, ma’am.” Stuffing his hand back into his pocket, he sighed. “That was my boss. She’s very… Close minded, if you catch my drift.”

 

You winced, “I think I do.”

 

“Yeah, word of what happened got around and… Well, I don’t have a job anymore.”

 

“Aw, Chad… I’m so sorry.” You placed a hand on his shoulder, guilt settling deep in your gut. This was partially your fault, after all… “Is there anything I can do? I can’t help but feel a little responsible.”

 

He chuckled uneasily, “Unless you can get me another job, then I don’t think so.”

 

You sighed. Of course you couldn’t get him another job. No doubt the incident had spread to the other stores and businesses around… Monster incidents caught on like wild fire. Humans were incredibly judgmental, even towards their own kind. Even you weren’t spared the odd looks you got when you and Sans would go out together, but you’d grown used to it.

 

But… What if you _were_ able to get Chad another job? Heck, if it weren’t for your own job you would still be as close minded as Chad’s old boss! And you remember a certain scientist complaining about needing a new assistant…

 

A bright smile crossed your face, “So, I’m assuming you’re free for the rest of the day, right?”

 

The young man quirked an eyebrow at you, suddenly mildly suspicious of your odd question.

 

\---

 

“Oh… My… God…”

 

“I know, that was my first reaction when I met him, too.”

 

“Is… Is he sniffing me?!”

 

“Careful, he can smell fear.”

 

You chuckled from your spot off to the side as Gaster inspected the trembling teen. His dark sockets narrowed as his eyelights searched Chad’s face for something before he circled around him for the tenth time since you’d walked in.

 

“Well, Doc?” You crossed your arms as you leaned against a cluttered desk. “Think he’ll do?”

 

“Do?! Do for what?!” Chad cast you a frightened look. “Lady, what have you gotten me into?!”

 

Gaster stopped in front of him again, bending slightly to be eye level with the shaking human. “Human,” he spoke, finally, his odd voice stabbing Chad to his core, “From the simple look of you, I can assume you have a nearly inexistent social life. You spend your extra time sitting indoors, playing video games as well as watching shows that involve zombies or vampires or something of the sort. You indulge on junk food and carbonated beverages as well as hardly exercise, but you are young and those things are quite common for humans your age.

 

“You stay awake until the wee hours of the morning, sleeping all throughout the day unless you have a prior engagement, like work or a family gathering, which you hardly attend anyway. Now, tell me, am I incorrect in any of these statements?”

 

Chad was stark white, all color drained from his face as Gaster waited patiently for his response. “Um… Uh… No?”

 

“Very well,” Gaster turned on his heel, black lab coat swishing with his movements as he disappeared from the cluttered lab.

 

A stale silence fell over the room as you shuffled over to him, an amused smile on your face. “You okay?”

 

Finally, he looked at you, eyes still wide with unbridled fear. “What… Just… Happened?”

 

Placing a hand on his stiff shoulder, you simply answered, “You’ve got yourself a job, my friend.”

 

“What? How?! I didn’t- I don’t- I have to work with HIM?!” Chad stared at you as if you had just asked him to sacrifice his first born child.

 

“Trust me, he’s not all that bad. Doctor Gaster just… Thinks a little differently than most.” You gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder. “Just make sure you bring in coffee and donuts and you’ll do just fine. He likes the crème filled ones, but he hates sprinkles.”

 

“No sprinkles… Got it.”

 

\---

 

 “So… What exactly will I be doing?” Chad questioned as you exited the lab. “I won’t be, like, a volunteer for an experiment will I?”

 

You giggled, “Of course not! Doctor Gaster has been in need of an assistant. He might be the most intelligent scientist, but he’s quite scatterbrained at times.” Letting out a sigh, you led Chad down a brightly lit hallway. “He hardly lets himself rest. I actually think he’s been here for three days, going on four.”

 

“Yeesh… That’s intense.”

 

You nodded, digging your keycard out of your purse, “You’re telling me… He hardly eats, never sleeps because he’s always here. Your job will be mostly paperwork, just keeping things in order. You know, filing and organization.”

 

Chad came to stop close next to you, quirking a brow. “He doesn’t use a computer for that?”

 

An undignified snort left you, “Please, Doctor Gaster on a computer? Last time he tried that, the monitor was tossed from the sixth floor.”

 

“Oh…”

 

Finally finding your blasted keycard, you smiled. “Don’t worry, you’ll do just fine.” Looking up at him, your smile softened. “And I’ll always be close by. In case he gets too intimidating, which can happen often, I’m just down the hall.”

 

“So… I’d get to see you pretty often then?” That thought brought a smile to the teen’s face. You were really kind, and heck, you were pretty cute, too. Part of him wanted to get to know you better.

 

You chuckled lightheartedly and led him into your own lab, “Yeah, I guess so! Anyway, I figured you could meet my partner.”

 

Partner?

 

“Who happens to be asleep. Again.”

 

You came to a stop at a desk, and Chad came up behind you. He peeked over your shoulder, eyes landing on a snoozing… Skeleton?

 

He vaguely remembered this skeleton, and honestly wouldn’t mind working with monsters. But something about him being your _partner_ felt weird in his gut…

 

“Sans.” You reached out a shook the snoozing skeleton. He didn’t budge, a tired mumble pressing through his teeth.

 

You sighed, shaking him again.

 

“Sans, wake up.”

 

“no.”

 

“Is this what you do when I’m not here?”

 

“leave a message at the beep.”

 

“Is this why I have loads of paperwork when I come in??”

 

“beeeeeeeeep.”

 

“Ugh,” you crossed your arms, “I hate you.”

 

Sans’ eye socket peeped open, his neutral grin stretching further into his face, “you know you love me.”

 

You rolled your eyes, “Anyway, Sans, this is Chad. Chad, this is my lazy partner, Sans.”

 

Chad stayed slightly hidden behind you, offering the short skeleton a small wave. Sans eyed him warily before standing up, his normal grin on his face as he neared the teen.

 

Holding out a hand, Sans greeted him, “nice ta meet ya, pal. officially, of course.”

 

Chad blinked, “You remember me?”

 

“course i do,” he shrugged, still holding out his hand, “i remember lots of stuff.”

 

Casting a wary look in your direction, Chad said nothing. You smiled gently and nodded, indicating that Sans was nowhere near as intimidating as Gaster had been. You knew monsters could be a little difficult to be comfortable around, so you did your best to be supportive.

 

Offering Sans a smile, Chad extended his hand to join the skeleton in a handshake. This was all going pretty smooth-

 

**_PPPBBBBBBBBBBBTTTTTTTHHHHH!_ **

****

Chad stilled, his face draining of all color again. His eyes were wide as he just stared at the short monster, a terrified look on his face.

 

Sans began to chuckle, low and deep at first, before it erupted into a proper laugh. Pulling his hand away, he revealed a whoopee cushion taped to his bones.

 

You flushed a bright red, “Sans!” You reached over, smacking him against the back of his skull. “What the hell is wrong with you?!”

 

Reaching up, Sans wiped a nonexistent tear from his face as his laughter subsided. “aw, man! you shoulda seen your face! you were white as… well… me.” This seemed to send the skeleton into another fit of laughter, to which you just rolled your eyes.

 

“Come on, let’s leave the skeleton to his puns and dry humor,” you tugged the still mortified teen away from Sans.

 

“He just… I didn’t… There wasn’t even a whoopee cushion there before…”

 

\---

 

“So, you live with four skeletons?”

 

You chuckled, “No, I actually only live with one. The little guy you tried to help, his name is Sweets. The other two are just my neighbors.”

 

Chad nodded. “So… Are they, like, related or something?”

 

Shrugging, you reached your door and began to fish out your keys, “Yeah, I guess you could say that…”

 

**_CRASH!_ **

****

You jumped, your eyes going wide at the commotion that was going on inside your apartment. Hurriedly unlocking the door, you were met with a disaster you could only dream of.

 

Your sofa was shoved away from the wall, the loveseat was missing its cushions, and your kitchen chairs were toppled over. Shouting could be heard from three skeletons gathered in your living room, as well as Felix’s flustered meowing from somewhere in the back of the apartment.

 

The skeletons had apparently not noticed your arrival just yet, as they carried on shouting at one another.

 

“YOU CAN’T TELL HER, CHIEF, PLEASE!”

 

“and why the hell not?! she deserves to know!”

 

“gotta agree with red on this one, little dude.”

 

“shut yer mouth, you sick pervert! you’re just as guilty as he is!”

 

“YEAH, YOU FORCED HER TO KISS YOU! THAT’S EVEN WORSE THAN WHAT I DID!”

 

“oh, come on, you can’t tell me you haven’t wanted to kiss her, too!”

 

“no! i haven’t! because i respect her!”

 

“what happened to humans being ‘disgusting’?”

 

“that’s… she’s… this is different!”

 

“IF YOU TELL HER, THEN SHE’LL TELL SANS! HE MIGHT KILL ME!”

 

“that’s what you get for groping people in their sleep, you twerp!”

 

"BUT... I DON'T WANT TO DIE! NOT YET!"

 

Pressing your lips in a thin line, you slowly brought the door to a close before turning to Chad, your eyes wide and face flushed red.

 

“Today has been a weird day,” you mumbled. “A really weird day.”


	14. In Which Papyrus Has An Idea

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And Chief doesn't like it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I HAVE RETURNED FROM THE DEAD.
> 
> I wasn't dead, just working my tushy off at work.

“Okay,” you sighed, pinching the bridge of your nose as you closed your eyes, “What happened?”

 

The room was dead silent as everyone stewed in their own thoughts. Sweets sat on the loveseat with his gloved hands folded in his lap, avoiding looking anywhere near you. Ace stood up against the wall with his arms crossed, eyelights glaring straight at the human boy sitting next to you. Chief had a smug look on his face as he sat on the other side of you, knowing the other two skeletons in the room were most likely in trouble.

 

Then there was Chad.

 

Poor, poor Chad.

 

The teenager sat slightly hunched to your left, his hands shoved down between his legs as he attempted to ignore the glares from the tallest skeleton in the room. He felt safe knowing you were just a few inches away from him, but the stale silence in the room did little to make him feel better. He was stuck here, at least until you could take him home.

 

You were his ride.

 

“Chief.”

 

The angry skeleton jolted at your tone, casting a look over to you. “uh, y-yea?”

 

“Care to explain why I walked into World War III in my apartment?”

 

Sweets gasped, “WAIT, WHAT?! WHY DOES HE GET TO GO FIRST?!”

 

“Because I asked him to, Sweets.”

 

“BUT HE’S JUST GOING TO TELL THE STORY SO HE DOESN’T GET IN TROUBLE!!!”

 

“Would you like to explain, then?”

 

“AFFIRMATIVE!” Sweets then stood, his arms crossed over his chest as he inhaled a deep breath, preparing himself for the story of a lifetime.

 

Chad leaned over, his voice low as he whispered, “How to skeletons breathe? He doesn’t have lungs?”

 

You offered one simple answer, “Magic.”

 

“Oh.”

 

“I REMEMBER IT LIKE IT WAS YESTERDAY!”

 

“it happened two hours ago, you little twerp,” Chief mumbled, a look of distain on his face.

 

“SHUSH SHUSH! I AM TELLING THE STORY!”

 

 

“I WAS MINDING MY OWN BUSINESS, PLANNING WONDERFUL PUZZLES TO SHARE WITH MY FAVORITE HUMAN! I WAS TORN BETWEEN A JIGSAW PUZZLE OF A CAT AND CREATING A BARRAGE OF RIDDLES TO SHOW MY SMART PROWESS!

 

HOWEVER, JUST AS I WAS BEGINNING TO SET UP THE PUZZLE, THE DOOR BURST OPEN! I WAS SO TERRIFIED, BUT I HAD TO DO MY VERY BEST TO PROTECT (NAME)’S HOME AND HER BELOVED KITTY CAT, FELIX!

 

CHIEF STOMPED IN, GUNS BLAZING AND IMMEDIATELY HE BEGAN TO DEMAND SUCH HORRIBLE THINGS FROM ME! I KNEW HE WAS STRONG, BUT I, THE MAGNIFICENT SANS, WAS EVEN STRONGER! MWEHEHEH!

 

“if you don’t tell me what you’re hiding, i’ll rip your arms off!” HE THREATENED!”

 

 

“i never said that,” Chief defended, pointing a finger at Sweets, “you little liar!”

 

“NU UH! YOU’RE THE LIAR!”

 

“am not!”

 

“ARE TOO! YOU CAME IN HERE BULLYING ME FROM THE BEGINNING!”

 

“Hush!”

 

The two monsters looked to you, silenced at your outburst. You were seriously starting to get a headache. Massaging your temple, you sighed, “Okay, what happened next?”

 

“i came in, cuz you asked me to, to see what the little twerp was doing,” Chief started, but seemed to have trouble continuing. His skull began to flush a pale red, and sweat dotted his forehead. “he was… eh…”

 

You quirked a brow, waiting patiently for Chief to continue. You felt Chad shift uncomfortably next to you, and you reached over to place a comforting hand on his arm.

 

Ace subconsciously twisted his leather jacket in his hand, glaring daggers into the poor human teen.

 

“i heard him… talkin’ to himself.”

 

“CHIEF, SHUT YOUR MOUTH!”

 

You glanced over to the blue faced little skeleton, but he avoided meeting your eyes.

 

“he was sayin’ stuff about your-“

 

Sweets stood from his spot, stamping his boot to the floor. “CHIEF, STOP IT!” His sockets were wide and his face was ten different shades of blue.

 

“Okay!” You stood as well, your arms crossed over your chest. “That’s enough!”

 

Silence fell over the room again, and you took in a breath to calm your frazzled nerves.

 

“Look, I don’t care what happened, or how it happened, but what I walked into earlier was completely unacceptable!”

 

Chief started to say something, but your gaze pierced him.

 

“If you three are wanting to stay here, I don’t want this happening again.” You looked each skeleton in the eye, intending on making your point as sternly as possible. “That means each and every one of you needs to get along. I won’t pick favorites or choose sides, so you all need to find a way to work through things like thi-“

 

“he touched your boobs while you were sleeping!”

 

You stopped mid-rant, your eyes going wide at Chief’s sudden outburst.

 

Once more, silence fell over the room. That seemed to be happening a lot right now. Through the next few seconds, Chief’s words registered in your brain. And, as they registered, your face became redder and redder.

 

Sweets fidgeted in his spot when your gaze turned to him.

 

“Well!” Chad then stood from his awkward perch on the sofa. “This has been all good fun, you know, with the fighting and boob-grabbing, but I’m just gonna go.” He started taking confident strides towards the door, when you reached out and stopped him.

 

“I’m going with you,” you mumbled, attempting to hide your embarrassment on your face, “Gotta drive you home.”

 

 

 

The car ride was silent most of the way, with Chad sneaking glances at you every so often. He’d tried starting up a conversation with you, but every word failed before he could even speak. So, he sat in a stale silence.

 

Your mind, on the other hand, wasn’t silent at all.

 

Sweets copped a feel while you were sleeping?? How the heck did you sleep through that?! Why would he do that?? What was up with these skeletons?

 

First, Ace was (and still is, sometimes) the biggest creep the moment he landed in your life, and now, the sweetest, most adorable little skeleton happened to be a closet pervert? Was Chief next?!

 

An aggravated sigh exited your nose as you followed Chad’s directions (he was mostly pointing, choosing to stay silent). Finally, you pulled up in front of a cute little house with a white Pickett fence out front, and Chad nodded that this was his stop. “Thank you, (Name).”

 

You smiled, still feeling kind of uncomfortable and embarrassed. You sighed, “No problem. And I really apologize for… Well, for how the guys acted. I don’t know what’s going in with them.”

 

“No, no! Don’t apologize, it’s fine. Really.” He thought for a moment. “Well, I mean, it’s kinda fine. I can honestly say I’ve never been in a situation like that before.”

 

Casting your eyes back down to your steering wheel, you nibbled on your lip. “I can understand if you don’t want to work with us anymore. I wish I could say that something like this would never happen again, but I wouldn’t wanna lie.”

 

Chad gave you a weak little laugh, and you cringed. Well, this wasn’t going how you expected… Actually, no, this is going exactly as expected. Groaning, you let your forehead fall against your steering wheel, another flush of embarrassment staining your face.

 

“H-Here.”

 

Turning your head, you were met with a shaky hand holding a folded piece of paper. You sat up, giving the paper a questioning look. The longer you stared, the shakier Chad became. Slowly, you plucked the paper from his fingers.

 

“Uh-“

 

“Okay, bye!”

 

With a slam of your car door, he was gone, leaving you in his confusing wake. Upon unfolding the slightly crumpled, kinda sweaty piece of paper, you found a number scribbled down in blue ink.

 

Aw, Chad gave you his number.

 

What a gentleman! At least he didn’t force you into a kiss. Or, y’know, grab your boobs in your sleep.

 

 

 

“A Friendship Party?”

 

You stared up at the jovial skeleton, one brow quirked in question. Papyrus seemed elated that his idea wasn’t automatically denied.

 

“YES, MY DEAR FRIEND, A FRIENDSHIP PARTY!”

 

Papyrus had invited you to lunch out of the blue, excited to tell you of his latest and greatest idea. He’d wished to have a large get together, with all of his friends from the Underground, to meet the new skeletons that lived in your proximity.

 

You glanced down at your half eaten salad, running through the possibilities in your mind. Papyrus watched over his plate of spaghetti as you debated with yourself. Really, nothing too bad could come from it… Right? After all, it would be nice to be able to take trips and whatnot with your skeletal companions and not have to make excuses as to who they were.

 

But then there was the issue of Chief and Papyrus.

 

Chief hadn’t been able to bring himself around to meet the jovial skeleton just yet, and you didn’t want to push him farther than his comfort would allow. Papyrus was harmless, and you knew that. But from what you’d understood from Chief’s background, anything doing with Papyrus put him on edge.

 

“I’ll have to think about it… I don’t know if the guys are ready for that just yet.”

 

“AW, BUT THINK OF IT AS A GREAT EXPERIENCE FOR ALL OF US!” Papyrus jabbed his fork into a large meatball, wagging it at you in a chastising manner. “IT HAS BEEN SO DIFFICULT KEEPING MY MOUTH SHUT ABOUT MY NEW FRIENDS TO MY OLD FRIENDS!”

 

You gave him an apologetic look. “I know, and I’m sorry to ask you to keep the secret… The only others who know about it is Alphys and Undyne aside from you-“

 

“UNDYNE KNOWS?!”

 

You chuckled, “Yeah, she actually found out before you did.”

 

“HOW?!”

 

“Breaking down my door.”

 

“OH.”

 

“Just let me talk to them about it first, okay?”

 

 

“no.”

 

“But-“

 

“you can go, but leave me outta it.”

 

You huffed, crossing your arms over your chest. Chief hadn’t even looked up from the magnifying glass as he answered in his short replies, keeping his hands busy with the forceps and soldering gun. “C’mon, Chief, we don’t know how long you’ll be here, but you can’t keep yourself hidden from everyone forever…”

 

“can too.”

 

“No, you can’t.”

 

“wanna bet?”

 

“Chief.”

 

“I THINK IT’S A WONDERFUL IDEA!” Sweets bounded up next to you, but kept his space. Things were still kinda tense between you, especially after you had to sit him down and tell him why grabbing someone’s breasts while they slept was a bad thing. The short skeleton sent you a slightly nervous look, but when you smiled at him the apprehension melted away. “IT WOULD BE RATHER NICE TO MEET EVERYONE FROM THIS UNIVERSE, AFTER ALL!”

 

You nodded in agreement with him, turning to get a look at the unusually silent tallest skeleton. You’d noticed his silence for most of the day, but chose not to address his moodiness. If he wanted to talk, he would. “What do you think, Ace? Sound fun?”

 

Ace glanced over the top of his book, his blank stare your response.

 

“See? Ace agrees.”

 

“he didn’t say nothin’.”

 

“Chief.”

 

“no.”

 

You inhaled sharply. Something had to win him over! Asking him nicely wasn’t getting you anywhere, and you wanted him to be included in everything the group would possibly do in the future. He continued to piece some of the motherboard back together, not noticing you coming up behind him.

 

Grabbing the leather back of the chair, you whipped it around so he was facing you. Chief jolted when you slammed your hands down on either side of him, fingers gripping the arms of the chair as you bent down to his level. “Chief, you are going and that is final.”

 

“what?? you can’t jus tell me what to do!”

 

“Oh, really? Because I think I just did. This is good for you, and Papyrus is super excited about the party.”

 

Chief shivered at your authoritative voice, an involuntary red splashing his cheekbones. “but!”

 

“You’re going.”

 

“hold on!”

 

“Great!” You straightened up, placing your hands on your hips. “The party is next Friday, so clear your schedules!”

 

“YAY!” Sweets pumped his fists in the air. “PARTY TACOS!”

 

Chief remained frozen in his spot, sockets wide as he watched you saunter away, tugging your phone from your pocket. He could feel his magic pumping harshly against his ribcage, the red still staining his face. He just… You just… You just bullied him into going to a party, dammit!

 

And there was no way in hell he was going to admit that… Well, he kinda liked it.

 

“Papy!” You chimed, holding your phone up to your ear. “Good news! We’re down to party. Yep, all of us. Plus one, actually.” You continued to carry on your conversation, walking out into the hall.

 

Chief sighed, sinking down lower in his chair.

 

Well, fuck.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's A PARTY NEXT CHAPTER! YAYA!


	15. In which a party takes place!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> PARTY! YAYA!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I HAVE RETURNED. I apologize for my absence, so have this super long chapter as my apology.
> 
> Song that Reader sings: https://youtu.be/i2bORWF1s58

“AND WE WILL HAVE THREE KINDS OF SPAGHETTI: WITH MEATBALLS, WITHOUT MEATBALLS, AND WITHOUT SAUCE.”

 

“So… Just noodles?”

 

“PRECISELY.”

 

You scribbled down the dishes onto your tiny notebook, following closely behind the tall skeleton. So far, he was requesting three different spaghetti dishes, two versions of gnocchi, a ravioli bake, and a seven layer lasagna. “Do you think maybe we should have something other than pasta?”

 

“FOR WHAT PURPOSE? EVERYONE LOVES PASTA, HUMAN, EVEN THOSE WHO DON’T LOVE PASTA LOVE PASTA!”

 

“Not if they don’t like it…”

 

“I THINK THE MENU IS PERFECT.”

 

You sighed, knowing it was rather difficult to convince Papyrus otherwise. Stuffing the little pad into your purse, you decided to change the subject. “So, who all is invited? Anyone I know?”

 

Papyrus nodded, “YES, WELL KING ASGORE AND QUEEN TORIEL WILL BE THERE, WHICH MEANS FRISK WIL BE, TOO! ALPHYS AND UNDYNE, AND METTATON AND HIS COUSIN ARE FLYING IN SPECIFICALLY FOR THE OCCASION! I INVITED THE TEMMIES BUT… WELL, NO ONE KNOWS WHAT THEY DO. I SPECIFICALLY DID NOT INVITE JERRY. I ACTUALLY SENT HIM AN INVITATION STATING HE WAS UNINVITED.”

 

“Who is Jerry?”

 

“YOU DON’T WANT TO KNOW.”

 

“Oh.” You casually pushed the cart, strolling behind Papyrus as he led you down the condiment aisle. As your eyes scanned the shelves, you distantly remembered a certain monster who had an affinity for mustard. Slight guilt settled in your gut for forcing Chief into agreeing to attend the party, you really should have waited…

 

But Chief was your friend! He deserved to have fun just as much as anyone else, and you’d be damned if you were going to let him sit the party out. Part of you, no, MOST of you blamed his Papyrus for how Chief responded. Oooh, if you ever got the chance to talk to him… Needless to say he’d feel your wrath.

 

“HUMAN, WE MUST NOT DAWDLE! STOP GAZING AT THE CONDIMENTS, YOU MIGHT MAKE THEM NERVOUS.”

 

 

“Sweets, stop bouncing.”

 

“WILL THERE BE MUSIC?!”

 

“Sweets, I can’t tie your bow tie if you don’t calm down.”

 

“WILL THERE BE KARAOKE?!”

 

“Yes, now sit still.”

 

“BUT WILL THERE BE-?!” You sighed, quickly cutting him off with a smooch to the forehead. Sweets fell silent, the stars in his sockets blipping to hearts, but otherwise he remained still and silent. There! A perfectly tied bow tie! You felt a little proud of yourself, now that Sweets was all gussied up for the party. You weren’t sure how or when he acquired the snazzy dress shirt and slacks, but you couldn’t complain. He was heck adorable!

 

You stood from your kneeling position, smoothing any creases from your skirt. You’d chosen a nice light blue party dress, to which Sweets wanted to coordinate his own outfit.

 

“Now, let’s go see if the others are ready.”

 

 

  
“Ace, please put on a shirt.” There was absolutely no hint of emotion aside from annoyance in your tone. You’d knocked gently on your neighbor’s door, intending to fetch him so you could leave for the party. And who answered the door? None other than Ace, the skeleton that seemed to be addicted in showcasing his rib cage for the entire world to see.

 

“wha? thought you liked seein’ me all barebones,” he teased, leaning against his doorframe.

 

You resisted the urge to roll your eyes, brushing past the cocky skeleton. “As much as I love to disagree with you, and believe me, I love disagreeing with you, that’s not the reason you need to wear a shirt.”

 

He shut the door, watching you curiously as you entered his bedroom. He followed, his thumbs laced into his belt loops, “then what’s the reason, doll?”

 

“Money!” Your voice was slightly muffled from the inside of his closet.

 

He quirked a brow bone, “money?”

 

You returned, a simple black dress shirt draped over your arm. “Yes, money. Your clothes happened to be the most expensive out of everyone’s, including mine. It’s only right if you wear them.” You came to a stop in front of him, holding out the shirt. “Here, dress yourself.”

 

He let out an over exaggerated sigh. “well, y’see, I would. but I did this thing the other day, now my shoulder really hurts. can’t really do a whole lotta movin’.”

 

Was… Was he serious?

 

“gonna hafta help me, baby doll.”

 

You twitched, irritation bubbling up in your gut. Just who the heck did this skeleton think he was?! “I’m afraid I have to decline,” you growled, roughly pushing the shirt into his hand.

 

“then looks like ‘m goin all natural,” he snickered.

 

“No!” You pushed the shirt further into his grasp. “No, no. Absolutely not.”

 

He just stared down at you, that same shit eating grin on his face.

 

“Shirt. Now.”

 

“wow, since when did you get so demanding?” You opened your mouth to defend yourself, but he stopped you when he leaned closer, hovering his face over yours. “don’t get me wrong, sweetheart, i kinda like it.”

 

Well, unlike Chief, forcing Ace to do anything was out of the question. And asking him nicely was definitely not getting you anywhere either.

 

Then, somewhere deep, deeeeeep in the crevices of your mind, a light bulb went off. And a devious little idea started filling your head. And what was that idea, dear reader?

 

Feminine. Powers.

 

Lidding your eyes, you gazed up at the skeleton through your lashes. A breathy chuckle parted through your lips, “Oh, Ace…” You gently looped your arms around him, fiddling with the buttons on the shirt. You’d have to be really sneaky with this… “You always know just what to say.”

 

Ace sputtered, the change in your voice taking him off guard. Woah, were you serious? A smirk made its way onto his face, “i try, doll, i try.”

 

Giggling, you gently tugged the sleeves up and over his arms, making sure to keep his attention on you and your words. “I don’t know who I think I’m kidding, playing hard to get all the time.” A soft little pout formed on your lips, and you batted your lashes for good measure.

 

It seemed to be a good call, because the monster in front of you had to struggle to keep a groan in. As much as Ace desired to know where this behavior was coming from, he couldn’t have cared less. Here you were, alone, with him, in his own apartment.

 

“Maybe I should just,” you tugged the shirt up his arms, successfully to his shoulders as you leaned forward, dropping your voice down to a needy whisper, “Be honest with myself.”

 

A squeak, a _squeak_ , tried to worm its way between his line of teeth, and you struggled to keep your composure. You brushed your lips over the smooth surface of his clavicle, earning you a shudder and another strangled sound.

 

Slowly dragging your hands down his chest, you located the bottom most button. Yes! You were almost home free! You inwardly chuckled, knowing your victory was soon at hand.

 

Ace chuckled, seemingly trying to hide his excitement, eye lights trained on your lips. You leaned forward, almost on your tippy toes, and gently finished with the top button, your lips curling into a smile.

 

“Oh, Ace,” you breathed out, hamming it up a bit as a form of revenge, “You wanna know what I like most about you?”

 

He groaned, a low, almost nonexistent sound, and gripped your sides with shaky hands. His voice was husky and smooth, obviously too lost in whatever fantasy was starting in his mind. “can’t say i do, baby...”

 

Oh, Jesus, he was getting ridiculous. Okay, stay in character.

 

Giggling, you brushed your lips against his jaw, earning you a shudder. “You’re just so…”

 

His sockets slipped shut, as if waiting for your praise.

 

“Unbelievably…”

 

His hands gripped your sides tighter, and you had to keep your composure as you whispered:

 

“Gullible.”

 

He froze, and when you glanced back up at his face, you could have died. As your word sunk in, his entire skull gradually flushed in a bright yellow, sweat beading his forehead. An ungraceful snort began your rumbles of laughter and you had to support yourself against the wall.

 

“Holy moly, you should see your face!” Your laughter only grew as annoyance was etching itself onto his face. “I mean, really. Did you really, _honestly_ think I’d give in that fast? But, hey, that shirt looks nice on you.”

 

Aw, okay, now he was confused. “shirt? wha-?” Looking down, he was shocked to see that his bare bones were now covered in the soft material of the dress shirt, but he just glared at it as if it had offended him.

 

Wiping a tear away, you left the room, calling over your shoulder, “C’mon, we’re leaving in ten!”

 

“…what the fuck just happened?”

 

 

 

Papyrus and Sans lived just a little ways outside the city, Papyrus choosing the open roads as the best way to enjoy his red hotrod. Where he got the money for such an expensive car, or when he even got his license, were mysteries to you even to this day.

 

They owned a huge house, and for some reason had snow on the roof year round. At one point Sans has told you it was a replica of the same house the lived in in the Underground, but it was larger with more rooms and space. Papyrus loved to entertain guests and new friends, and once they found this mansion of a house in the country, they moved in the next day.

 

The kitchen was large, with lots of prep space and a stainless steel island. Papyrus owned almost every cookbook known to man and monster, as well as the highest grade cookware that was available. He’d even gone as far as attaining an actual chef’s hat, and the tall skeleton pulled it off remarkably well.

 

The rest of the house was equally as huge, and you’d b lying if you said you’d find any excuse to visit. It was homey and cozy, always full of comfort. You were slightly envious, Papyrus and Sans had achieved more in just two years than you’d achieved your whole life. You respected them, though, and loved them both.

 

Their large house was full of several monsters, some faces were familiar, but many were new and that excited you. You loved meeting new friends, and monsters turned out to be more wholesome and trustworthy than many of the human friends you used to have. You shuffled through the crowd, your skeleton posse tailing you, except for Chief.

 

He wasn’t comfortable yet, at least not enough to come inside. While you did force him into the car, you weren’t going to demand he come in until he was ready, so you let him mosey around outside, letting him chat with the few monsters out there. He seemed grateful for that, and you hoped that soon he would join you.

 

You had a hard time keeping up with Sweets, who wanted to meet and talk to literally every monster you passed. “It’s common courtesy to find the host first,” you’d told him, snagging him by his sleeve before he had the chance to run off. And, of course, finding the host wasn’t terribly difficult. Papyrus wasn’t the tallest monster you’d met (that award went to King Asgore, with Gaster as a close second) but it definitely wasn’t easy to lose him in a crowd.

 

Following your instincts, you headed towards the kitchen. You’d bumped into a few monsters, mumbling short apologies as you passed, until the archway to the kitchen was in view. You could hear the high-pitched, somewhat nasally voice of your friend, and used that as a guide. Papyrus was definitely the loudest of your friends, sometimes overpowering even Undyne.

 

A line of guests were gathered in the kitchen, and there was a large commotion coming from inside, of which Papyrus voice could be heard. Keeping a hold on Sweets, you reached behind you to tug along the tallest of your skeletal group. Ace hadn’t spoken much to you since you’d bamboozled him into wearing a shirt, the half hearted glares and yellow flushed skull the only interaction he’d given you.

 

Breaking through the crowd, and finally entering the kitchen, your eyes widened as you witnessed probably the most intense cooking you’d ever seen in your life. Papyrus, dear, precious, cinnamon roll Papyrus, had his skull twisted in the most determined sneer you’d ever seen. He stirred a large stockpot, which was boiling over, with incredible force, all the while letting out the wildest battle cry. Tomato sauce and noodles littered the countertops, pots and pans laid across the floors, there was a little white dog in the oven (WHICH YOU HOPED WASN’T ACTUALLY ON), and the kitchen was full of cheering monsters.

 

They seemed to get more riled up the faster Papyrus stirred, and their cheers were egging him on. He stirred and stirred, his energetic ‘NYEH’s getting louder and more aggressive.

 

“Heck yeah, Papyrus, show that pot who’s boss!”

 

“Kick that pasta’s butt!”

 

“Go Master Chef Papyrus!”

 

You chuckled lightheartedly at the crowd’s enthusiasm, which only seemed to grow when a child popped out of another, significantly larger pot set on the countertop. Frisk, the child ambassador to monsterkind, waved their arms energetically to the crowd, which caused Papyrus to stir the pot fast enough to where his wooden spoon snapped in half and the pot was flung from the stove top.

 

Again, more cheering from the crowd.

 

Frisk noticed you almost immediately, a bright smile on their face as they tried to wriggle themselves out of the pot. Sadly, they seemed to be stuck, and looked to you for assistance. You chuckled again and stepped over to the counter, fitting your hands underneath their arms and, with a little effort, freed them from the cookware and placed them back on the counter.

 

The child wrapped their arms around you in a quick hug, before leaning back and signing, ‘You finally made it! I was worried you had gotten lost!’

 

You smiled, “Well, I had more than just myself to worry about this time, kiddo.”

 

Frisk tilted their head, a little confused, when a bundle of blue bounded up to your side. Sweets tugged impatiently oh your skirt, “HUMAN, CAN I GO AND MINGLE _NOW_?!”

 

Frisk stared at the skeleton, more discontent etched on their face. ‘Sans?’

 

“Well, yes and no,” you lifted Frisk from the table, landing them on their feet on the tiled floor, “Frisk, this is Sweets, he’s my new roommate. Sweets, meet Frisk, our monster ambassador!”

 

Sweets seemed to give Frisk a little once over, and looked like he wanted to say something but instead stuck out a hand. “IT IS A PLEASURE TO MEET YOU, AMBASSADOR! I HOPE WE CAN BE GOOD FRIENDS!”

 

Frisk smiled, shaking the energetic skeleton’s hand, before signing, ‘It’s nice to meet you, too! And I’m sure we will!’

 

With that, Sweets bounded off into the crowd, intent on making more new friends. Frisk glanced up at you, apprehension on their face. ‘Gaster?’

 

“Working,” you sighed, giving them an apologetic look as their face fell slightly. The poor kid had tried all week to get the scientist to come, from calling, texting, even sending a small yellow bird with a letter. Gaster only responded in short answers, thanking Frisk for their invitation, but there was work that needed to be done. “It’s okay, we’ll get him next time kiddo.”

 

They perked up at that, ‘Right!’

 

You felt someone’s presence behind you, and you cast a glance over your shoulder at the tallest of your neighbors. He still looked salty as he shared a light glare with you, but your sweet smile caused him to roll his eye lights.

 

Nudging him with your elbow, you nodded towards Frisk. “Ace, this is Frisk. Frisk, this is my neighbor Ace.”

 

Grinning, Frisk copied their action of holding out a hand.

 

Ace, however, froze when he looked at the child. He went completely rigid, the lights in his sockets almost disappearing. You distantly remember his actions when Frisk’s name had been brought up before, but now Ace looked… Distant. Pained, even though he tried to hide it.

 

You started to say something when Ace took Frisk’s hand in his, his easy going smile slightly strained. “nice ta meet ya, kiddo.”

 

Frisk took back their hand, ‘Nice to meet you, too. I like your shirt!’

 

Ace flushed a bright yellow and you snorted, covering your mouth to hide your giggles. He elbowed you, embarrassment evident on his face. Frisk gave the pair of you a strange look, concerned for your growing giggles and Ace’s strange blush, but shrugged it off.

 

“HUMAN!” Papyrus exclaimed, bounding over to you with a fire extinguisher in his hands. “YOU MADE IT! GOOD, BECAUSE THE PARTY IS JUST GETTING STARTED!”

 

You chuckled, “Did the party involve you destroying your entire kitchen?”

 

“YOU KNOW AS WELL AS I THAT IT ISN’T A PARTY WITHOUT SOME FORM OF DESTRUCTION. IT IS WHAT THE HUMANS CALL ‘LIT’!”

 

“Oh, god, Papyrus. No.”

 

“'BOMB’?”

 

“Please stop.”

 

“’FIRE’!”

 

“Papyrus, no.”

 

“NO, REALLY. MY STOVE IS ON FIRE.” Using the red cylinder, he smothered a little flame that had caught onto an uncooked noodle.

 

“…okay.” Grabbing a rag, you gently wiped away a smear of tomato sauce from his cheekbone. “Have you seen your brother?”

 

“THANK YOU! OH, AND I HAVEN’T SEEN SANS FOR QUITE A WHILE… LAST I REMEMBER HE WAS HEADING TO THE LIVING ROOM TO SET UP SOME SORT OF DANCING GAME!”

 

You nodded, “Well, I’m gonna go find him. Please don’t destroy your kitchen anymore than you need.”

 

“BUT IT IS WHAT THE PEOPLE WANT!” The crowd behind you cheered at that and you resisted the urge to facepalm. Well, if he really wanted to, it seemed like he had the funds to repair the damage.

 

 

 

After grabbing a drink, you headed towards the living room with Ace trailing behind you. He seemed content in staying with you, much to your chagrin.

 

You looked at him, “Don’t you wanna go mingle? I’m sure tons of the people here would like to meet you.”

 

He lidded his sockets, placing a hand over his chest. “you tryin’ to shake me? ‘m hurt, doll.”

 

You rolled your eyes, “No, it’s just that you’ve been stuck around me for almost a week and a half. There are plenty of people to go and bother.”

 

“oh, hey look, it’s muffet.”

 

“Or you could stay with me. That seems like a better option.”

 

“nah, think i’ll go mingle. great advice, sugar.” And with a wink, he was gone.

 

You sighed, unexplained irritation on your face. Of course he’d go and hang with Muffet, but hey, at least you could go off and talk to people on your own now, too. Out of the corner of your eye you caught a flash of blue, followed by, “HOW THE HECK ARE YOU BEATING ME?!”

 

Clutching your cup to your chest, you worked your way through the sea of monsters towards the commotion. Well, you’d found Sans, and Undyne as well.

 

In the center of the living room there were two mats on the floor, both hooked up to a console beneath a large television. Undyne, who had to tie her hair up off her shoulders, took the left mat while Sans took the right. Undyne looked winded, but her brow was dipped in determination while Sans just… Appeared as comfortable and laid back as ever.

 

Undyne borderline stomped on the arrows coordinated on screen, her flow forced and rushed as she was determined in beating the skeleton. Sans’ moves weren’t near as rushed, but his movements were effective and rhythmic as he rolled along, not missing a single beat. He caught sight of you and turned his head to the side, sending a wink your way.

 

You chuckled and waved, giving him a thumbs up for his awesome progress. Sipping on your drink, you watched as Sans easily beat Undyne, to which she claimed, “AW, WHAT?! DUDE, REMATCH!”

 

“I WOULD LIKE TO BATTLE, MS. UNDYNE!” A monster child with no arms popped out of the crowd, firmly planting himself on the mat. “Please?!”

 

“Alright, twerp,” she grinned, “But I pick the song!”

 

“Wow,” you drawled as he shuffled up to you, “Didn’t know you had such sick moves.”

 

He shrugged, that same lazy grin on his face. “i will have you know that my moves are the sickest.” He then got a good look at you, his cheekbones taking on a light blue. “you look really nice, by the way. blue looks great on you.”

 

You smiled, your own cheeks turning warm. “Aw thanks. I didn’t know how formal the occasion was,” eyeing his pink house slippers, you chuckled, “Good to know I’m not too overdressed.”

 

“please, this is my formal wear. i only bust these bad boys out for the fancy stuff.”

 

“Right, right. My bad.” You began walking through the crowded home, chatting with Sans along the way, when someone accidentally bumped into you. Well, by bump, I mean crashed into your hard enough you knocked you over.

 

Your cup tumbled from your hand, the remainder of your drink splattering on the floor. Gravity seemed to pull down on you as your feet struggled to keep your body upright, and it felt like the whole of time itself started slowing down.

 

Sans reached out to grab you, and just barely missed your arm. You squeezed your eyes shut, preparing for the cold collision with the floor.

 

Only it never came.

 

The area around you became incredibly quiet, hushed whispers flitting around you like annoying little birds. You’d covered your face, hoping to at least shield your nose from the wood beneath you, and now you were peeking through your fingers to find…

 

A robot?

 

“Not to worry, my lovely fans!” His voice was smooth and synthetic, with a musical him tailing his words. “The lovely lady is safe, in none other than the world’s safest, most glamorous arms!” The robot flashed am award winning smile down at you, his inky black locks dashingly covering half of his perfect face.

 

The crowds around you watched intently, soaking in every word that left this robot’s mouth like water to a sponge. Some looked on in envy, while others were purely starstruck.

 

“Um,” you squeaked, finding he still held you in an incredibly deep dip, “Thank you?”

 

Effortlessly bringing you up, he spun you for a moment before dipping you again, to the other side. “Look, she is still in such a state of shock and wonder that she can hardly speak!”

 

Wonder? Why would you be in a state of wonder? Flicking your eyes over to Sans, you’d intended on silently asking him for help but found his face etched with pure annoyance. Okay, if Sans was annoyed at this guy, he probably wasn’t that great to be around. Glancing back up at the robot, you opened your mouth to speak.

 

Aaaaand, he cut you off.

 

“Darling, I have counted the days til we could meet!” Taking your hand in his, he flicked you out in a rudimentary spin before bringing you back in. “It is such as shame that you have had to live without knowing me for so long!”

 

Okay, what?

 

Your head was spinning and you tried to steady yourself, searching for any kind of sturdy purchase that wasn’t the robot humming in your ear. The crowd took this as you desperately clinging to this robot, and a few of them squealed.

 

“You must be in awe, simply starstruck to finally meet me, darling,” he chuckled, bringing you close enough to where you could hear gears turning in his chest, “And honestly who could blame you?”

 

You blinked a few times, pushing your glasses back up the bridge of your nose. “Um…”

 

“Go on, my wonderful princess, express your excitement!”

 

The crowd leaned in, anticipation clear on all of their faces.

 

“I’m sorry, but,” you looked up at him, furrowing your brow, “Who are you?”

 

A mortified gasp came from several of the surrounding monsters and out of the corner of your eye you saw someone faint.

 

He seemed to freeze momentarily, his whirring body going totally silent, before he released a perfect laugh. “Oh, I see! My wonderful and glorious features have affected your memory, darling! It happens more often than you’d believe.”

 

You tilted your head, “Um… No? I really don’t know you…”

 

His perfect face faltered for a second, shock now evident in his eyes. “B-But, how… I am…”

 

His grip on you loosened, his painted lips twitching slightly. You leaned away, afraid he would short circuit of something.

 

“Um, sorry to interrupt…” A sad voice behind you perked you out of your concerning situation, and when you turned around, your were met with a ghost.

 

Yep, a ghost.

You cracked a tiny smile, “Oh, hi. You’re not interrupting anything!” You then furrowed your brow. Hey, this ghost actually looked really familiar. “Wait… Are you… Are you Napstablook?!”

 

The ghost monster froze at your outburst, looking about like he was ready to disappear when you continued.

 

“Oh, my gosh, you are!” You pushed yourself out of the now silent robot’s arms, fluttering your hands over your chest. “Napstablook, can I just say I’m a huge fan?! Oh, I love your music, you’re such an amazing DJ!”

 

A tinge of gray lined Napstablook’s face at your praise, “R-Really?”

 

“Yes!” You pushed, your words fumbling over one another. “I loved your remix of Spooktune! I couldn’t stop listening to it for weeks!”

 

A burst of laughter from the crowd broke you out of your fangirling, causing you to glance over. A cat monster with orange fur and a cigarette hanging out of his mouth had doubled over, his laughter growing by the minute, the aggravated glares from everyone else not affecting him.

 

The robot then scowled, opening his mouth to say something when the cat monster beat him to it. “Wow, man, she didn’t- she just- haha, she has no idea who you are!” He doubled over, his hands (paws?) on his knees.

 

“I’m sorry?” You looked back up at the robot. “Should I know you?”

 

“You can’t possibly tell me you haven’t seen ANY of my work!” He seemed truly offended, his hands now planted on his hips. “Cooking with a Not-So-Killer Robot? MTT Daily, my talk show?! I have a line of clothing, for Asgore’s sake!”

 

You flushed, but smiled anyway, “Um, really, I’m sorry… I have no idea…”

 

“METTATON!” He fumed, crossing his arms. “I am the one and only Mettaton!”

 

“Mettaton… Well, hold on,” you placed a finger over your lips, “That does sound familiar…”

 

A hopeful look crossed his face, waiting for you to finally realize that he was-

 

“Oh!” You snapped your fingers. “You’re Napstablook’s cousin, right?”

 

Mettaton looked as if you’d shot him with an arrow, pure mortification on his face. He was distraught, only being recognized as someone’s cousin rather than the star everyone knew and loved. Well, almost everyone.

 

Sans came up next to you, his own chuckles wearing off, “well, now that you’ve totally destroyed mettaton’s confidence, let’s go do some karaoke.”

 

“Wait, I did what??” Your friend headed off in the direction of another room and you had no other choice but to follow, the shocked faces of the surrounding monsters making you rather uncomfortable. Turning back to Napstablook, you flashed him a smile. “It was really nice to meet you! See you around!”

 

“Oh, um…” A tiny smile threatened to break out on his face. “You’re so polite… Thank you…”

 

 

 

Standing outside, Chief heard a bunch of commotion from the other side of the window. He’d been chatting around with the other monsters who chose peace over the crowded inside when he’d heard cheering, shouting, and then silence.

 

Peering inside, he caught a flash of your blue dress as you were twirled around in Mettaton's arms. Your face was flushed a light pink from your embarrassment and concern, while the robot rambled on about whatever he rambled about.

 

An involuntary growl rose in his chest cavity as Mettaton held you by the waist, dipping you low and holding you close. You looked uncomfortable, glancing over to Sans for help.

 

Why was he just standing there?!

 

Chief wanted to shout at him. You needed help, for Asgore’s sake! Turning on his heel, he stomped his was to the front of the house, determined to save you if no one else would.

 

 

  
A round of applause ended a tree-like monster’s performance. She flushed a pretty green, saying a meek 'Thank you!’ through the microphone before scurrying back to her seat. You stood towards the back of the room, Sans at your side as you watched the next monster confidently take the microphone.

 

“you gonna sing?”

 

You chuckled uneasily, “Eheh, oh, no. I don’t think so."

 

“what? aw, c’mon,” Sans nudged you, “you gotta real good set of pipes. you’d be great.”

 

“I don’t know, I just- Wait, how do you know that?”

 

He shrugged, giving you a sly sideways glance.

 

You smirked. “Alright, smart guy. I’ll sing if you do.”

 

“ok.”

 

You slightly panicked, not expecting him to agree. “Wait-!”

 

“’m gonna go find pap.”

 

“Sans, wait, I was just-“

 

Aaaaaaaand, he was gone.

 

You crossed your arms, anxiety setting in. Did you really have to sing? God, you didn’t want to… How did you end up getting yourself into these situations?! Glancing up, you saw Sans and Papyrus take the ‘stage’, while a happy sounding song started over the speakers.

 

Sans started, keeping his lazy gaze on you.

 

_“umbrella at your side, it’s raining but you close it tight.”_

 

_“’AND HOW ARE YOU?’ PURRED A CAT JUST PASSING THROUGH!”_

 

_“those heels that you like are soaking but is that alright?”_

 

You grinned, Sans and Papyrus proving to be an impressive musical duo! Sans winked at you, making you chuckle, “You goofball!”

 

_“let out a sigh for another day, the same as the last._

_c’mon, let’s try, dye it blue, and change it up from the past._

_reflecting up from a puddle but then gone in a flash._

_is that the most that you could dream, or wanted to see?_

_but look around!”_

 

_“DANCE UP AND DOWN!”_

 

_“the world is now.”_

 

_“STILL GOING ‘ROUND!”_

 

_“just feel it pound.”_

 

_“WE’RE SKYWARD BOUND!”_

 

_“Move at the top speed of sound!”_

 

_“running to another day, i wanna break away and take the leap._

_as you’re stuck on yesterday, no sun to rise would be okay with me!_

_everyday, everyday is okay._

_taking it step by step, we’ll always move ahead!_

_our love is growing red,_

_need me more, need you more!_

_you fall down seven more times, i’ll be there seven, eight, nine._

_as we keep trying, we’ll find,”_

 

_“We’re always singing the same tune!”_

 

The crowd clapped along with the beat, and Papyrus was preparing himself for his part. Taking in a confident breath, he struck a pose and started to sing.

 

_“NOW FALLING TO HER SIDE, THE DROPS OF RAIN THAT MIX WITH LIGHT!”_

 

_“stealing a glance, hid a cat who turns his back.”_

 

_“THEIR HEAD STARING TO SINK, THIS BOREDOM IS JUST HARD TO FIGHT!_

_JUST SPINNING LIES WITH THE ONLY THREAD OF KINDNESS WE SAVED,_

_OH, IF WE'RE BLIND AND THE TRUTH IS JUST A PAINTING IN GRAY._

_DROWNING US OUT, ALL THE NOISY DROPS THAT FALL IN THE RAIN,_

_BUT FINGERTIPS TRACE EVRY LINE AND OPEN MY EYES!_

_I’LL PAINT IT BLUE!”_

 

_“i’ll play a tune.”_

 

_“I’M WISHING, TOO!”_

 

_“for something new.”_

 

_“IT WILL COME TRUE!”_

 

_“with me and you.”_

 

_“And then we’ll finally break through!”_

 

_“SWIMMING THROUGH THE MILKY WAY, I WANT TO BREAK AWAY AND TAKE THE LEAP!_

_SINCE WE’RE FALLING ANYWAY, NO MOON TO RISE WOULD BE OKAY WITH ME!_

_EVERY NIGHT, EVERY NIGHT IS ALL RIGHT._

_TAKING IT STEP BY STEP, WE’LL ALWAYS MOVE AHEAD._

_OUR LOVE IS GROWING RED._

_NEED ME MORE, NEED YOU MORE!_

_CRY TO ME, KNOW THAT I CARE! LEAN ON ME AND I’LL BE THERE!_

_AS WE KEEP TRYING WE’LL FIND.”_

 

_“You’re always gonna be there, too!”_

 

Sans reached out towards you, _“shining down on me, you’re my blue moon.”_

 

Papyrus did the same, his sweet smile causing your heart to flutter. _“DREAMING FOREVER TO FIND NOW I’M AWAKE!”_

 

_“i need to find tomorrow._

_can you take me away?”_

 

_“And go the top speed of sound!_

_Running to another day, I wanna break away and take the leap!_

_As you’re stuck on yesterday, no sun to rise would be okay with me!_

_Everyday, everyday is okay!_

_Taking it step by step,_

_We’ll always move ahead!_

_Our love is growing red!_

_Need me more, need you more!_

_You fall down seven more times, I’ll be there seven, eight, nine!_

_As we keep trying we’ll find,_

_You’re always gonna be there, too!_

_We’re always singing the same tune!_

_Everyday from now on!”_

 

The crowd erupted in loud cheering and applause, and you clapped as well. Who knew they were so good?! Papyrus was made for the stage, and Sans had a surprisingly amazing singing voice. Your skeleton buddy started making his way back to you when you felt a tug on your skirt.

 

Frisk smiled up at you, promptly holding up a few sheets of piano music. You recognized the song almost instantly, and you flushed. It was an English translation of one of your favorite songs from one of your favorite movies. You’d only watched it once with Frisk, but once was enough for such a beautiful film.

 

You blinked, “You… You want me to sing this?”

 

They nodded, a bright smile on their face.

 

“But I can’t play this piece… It’s too hard.”

 

‘Grillby can! I already asked him!’

 

Of course they did. You sighed, knowing there was no way you were going to be able to back out of this, especially now that Frisk was borderline forcing you. Sans appeared next to you, handing you his microphone. “you’re up, pal.”

 

Shooting him a glare, you shuffled up to the front of the room, handing the sheet music to the awaiting flame elemental. Luckily, you had to start singing before the piano could start, so you had time to prepare.

 

“You will do great,” Grillby encouraged before taking his seat at the grand piano.

 

You nodded, swallowing your nervousness as you prepared yourself. Monsters, at least everyone you’ve met, have all had wonderful singing voices. Maybe it was just a monster thing? You didn’t know, but now they were all staring expectantly at you. You scanned the crowd, picking out your friends.

 

Undyne and Alphys had joined the crowd, patiently waiting for you to start. Sans and Papyrus stood towards the back, the taller of the two giving you a supportive thumbs up. You’d finally caught sight of the king and queen, both watching you expectantly. Sweets and Frisk planted themselves on the floor in front of you, and Ace just walked through the door (with Muffet hanging off his arm). You’d just barely caught Chief as he poked his skull in, and you gave him a small smile.

 

All your friends gave you confidence, so you inhaled, holding it in for just a moment.

 

_“The sorrowful gust of wind that blew right between you and me,_

_Where did it find the loneliness it carried on the breeze?”_

 

Your voice wavered only slightly, but your fears melted away in an instant. You could do this!

 

_“Looking up at the sky after shedding a stream of tears,_

_I can see for miles of blue, it’s never been so clear.”_

 

Grillby started to play, the soft melody drifting out through the house and you smiled.

 

_"Speeches that my father gave me would always make me despair._   
  
_Somehow, I feel a warmth and comfort today._   
  
_Your ever kind heart, the way you smile, and even how you find your dreams._   
  
_I knew nothing, so honestly, I've always copied you."_

 

Even though he put you up to it, your voice still stopped Sans’ soul in its tracks. He’d heard you sing before, just to yourself when you thought you were alone in the lab. But hearing you sing so confidently and beautifully was a treat.

 

_"Now, just a little more,_   
  
_Only just a little more,_   
  
_Let's stay here a little longer now._   
  
_Now, just a little more,_   
  
_Only just a little more,_   
  
_Let's stick together just a little bit longer."_

 

The rest of your skeleton posse felt the same as Sans. Hearing your melodic voice ring out stopped each of them instantly. Their souls all gave unexpected tugs and lurches, your words resonating with them all differently.

 

 _"Oh yes, we are time fliers!_  
  
Scaling the walls of time, climber,  
  
Tired of playing hide and seek with time and always coming just short.  
  
Crying even when you're happy,  
  
Smiling even when you're feeling lonely,  
  
It's because a part of you  
  
Has made it here before the rest has."

 

Grillby played the piano wonderfully, you taking this time to breathe. When you looked back up, though, your eyes landed on none other than Ace. For once since you’d met him, his face didn’t hold and smugness. He stared at you, he was staring right at you, his skull tinted with a soft yellow and his sockets wide.

 

 _"I used to wish upon the stars, the toys that I once adored._  
 _  
Forgotten now, are rolling 'round the corners of the floor._  
 _  
Finally, my dreams have counted up to a hundred today._  
 __  
Someday, I'll trade them all for just the very one."

 

A monster leaned over, keeping his voice down as he whispered to Chief, “She’s really good, huh?”

 

Chief couldn’t say anything, he just nodded. And you were really good! You were amazing in his opinion, and he couldn’t take his eye lights off of you.

 

 _"Now, just a little more,  
_  
 _Only just a little more,_  
 _  
Let's stay here a little longer now._  
 _  
Now, just a little more,  
_  
 _Only just a little more,_  
 __  
Let's stick together just a little bit longer.

_Oh yes, we are time fliers, so, and I,  
_   
_I knew who you were way before...  
_   
_Way before I even knew my own name,  
_   
_There's no clue, but I'm sure, I swear!"_

 

Your confidence boosted through the roof! Your soul felt so free and loud, it was a wonderful feeling. It felt like it was going to jump right out of your chest.

 

Sweets was speechless, his blue lights wide and star shaped. ‘WOWIE…'

 

 _“Oh yes, we are time fliers,_  
  
Scaling the walls of time, climber,  
  
Tired of playing hide and seek with time and always coming just short!  
  
No, never mind that,  
  
No, never mind what I said now,  
  
'Cause I'm on my way to you!  
  
Oh, we are time fliers!  
  
Dashing up the steps of time now,  
  
No more playing hide and seek with you and time,  
  
And always coming just short!  
  
You're quite a showy crier,  
  
Want to stop your tears, see your eyes drier,  
  
But when I went to wipe your tears dry  
  
You refused but I saw them pouring down your face, I knew why  
  
Crying even when I'm happy,  
  
Smiling even when I'm feeling lonely,  
  
It's because this heart of mine  
  
Has made it here before my body!" 

 

Grillby finished playing, him hardly being able to hit the last note before the crowd erupted into another wave of applause, some monsters cheering with tears in their eyes.

 

“THAT WAS SO AWESOME!” Sweets latched onto you, his smile wide and proud as he looked up to you. “I DIDN’T KNOW YOU COULD SING SO WELL!”

 

You chuckled, the adrenaline still rushing through your body. “Well, thank you! Maybe I should sing professionally!”

 

“YOU TOTALLY SHOULD!”

 

“No, Sweets, that was a joke.” You handed the microphone off to the next singer, your eyes scanning the crowd for Chief. You wanted to hang out with him, considering he seemed comfortable enough coming inside now.

 

But he was gone.

 

Furrowing your brow, you shuffled your way through the crowd. Maybe he’d gone back outside?

 

 

 

Fuck. Fuck it all to _hell_.

 

Chief grabbed at his chest, and cursed the annoyingly bounding soul on the inside. What the hell was wrong with him? What the hell was wrong with _you_?!

 

Did humans have a certain kind of magic over monsters?? He’d never felt this way, and towards a human no less. Your words must have held some kind of magic or something… It made him feel queasy and jittery beyond belief.

 

It _sucked_. Stars, this sucked so much!

 

Why did he care about your stupid song? Or your stupid voice? Or your stupid eyes, with that stupid shine to them when you were happy? Or the stupid way your lips curled up a little higher on the left side?

 

Or the _stupid_ way you made him _feel_?

 

Growling, he sent a harsh kick against the brick wall. Light pain rattled through his bones but he paid it no mind. This was _bullshit_!

 

“Chief?”

 

He stilled, frozen in his spot at the sound of your voice. Why? _Why_?!

 

“Chief, are you okay?”

 

“go away,” he growled out, ignoring the horrible fluttering in his chest.

 

You furrowed your brow, bringing the door closed behind you. “Chief, you can talk to me. What’s wrong?”

 

His senses were heightened and he could feel you nearing him and it just rubbed him all wrong. He was uncomfortable, and you were the reason why. “i said go away!”

 

You stopped, your concern bubbling to something unpleasant. Why the hell was he being like this? “Hey, look, I don’t know what your problem is but-“

 

“ _you_ are!” He whipped around, an angry red magic flaring from his left socket. “you’re my problem!”

 

Wait… What? His outburst rendered you speechless, but you were just growing angrier and you forced yourself to respond. “What did I ever do to you?! I’ve only tried to be nice ever since you got here, but you’ve been nothing but a jerk!”

 

“i didn’t ask to be brought here! i didn’t ask for you, or your kindness, or _any_ of this shit!” His red magic only flared harsher, the emotions tumbling around in his soul aggravating and grating at him.

 

“I didn’t ask to bring you here! It just- It just happened! I’m sorry, but I’m doing my best here!”

 

“i don’t need you,” he growled, taking a menacing step towards you. You were the reason he felt this way… But why? He couldn’t stand it! “i don’t need you, or them, or any of this!”

 

Frustrated tears bit at your eyes and every nerve in your body told you to walk away, but you refused. You’d been making such good progress with him!

 

“you’re annoying, you’re pushy, you’re nosy as hell,” he sneered, his ignorant soul twisting and turning, “can’t hardly stand being around you!”

 

Blinking your tears away, you sucked in a breath. “You-You… Well, you aren’t a ray of sunshine either, pal! You’re rude and mean, and you always ruin the good mood! All I ever wanted to do was be friends with you!”

 

“i don’t need friends!” He turned and began to walk away, mumbling, “and i sure as hell don’t need you.” He wondered if he was just trying to tell himself that, or if he really meant it. Ugh... It didn't matter.

 

Your hand shot out and grabbed his sleeve, which could have been the worst mistake. You just wanted to talk, to be friends with him, to-

 

Pain?

 

A piercing pain blossomed in your abdomen, something warm and wet coating your skin. Your brain couldn’t register it completely, but your wide eyes and blanched face were laced in white pain. “Ch… Chief?”

 

The red, flaring magic fizzled out from his eye, white pinpricks of light hazy and unfocused as he looked down, his hand pressed up against your midsection. A dark maroon began to ooze out, staining his hand and your pretty blue dress.

  
“There’s… There’s something in there,” you choked, letting go of his sleeve.

 

Fear and regret filled Chief’s face as he slowly pulled his hand away, a long, sharp bone sticking out of his palm. Your blood coated it, warm and sickening as he pulled it from your body. He stumbled back from you, the shock on his face giving way to panic. “i didn’t… i…”

 

You didn’t cry out, not did you curse him, but you just looked at him. Your shaky hands raised up to cover the wound, the crimson stain growing by the second. “He-Help?”

 

Chief heard the door open, Papyrus’ voice ringing out. “HUMAN? I SAW YOU COME OUT HERE! YOU MUST HURRY, WE ARE ABOUT TO HIT A PAPER MAMMAL FILLED WITH CANDY!”

 

Chief began to panic, and you were starting to sway. He reached out, wanting to catch you, but you stepped back, staring at him with unbridled fear. The ground beneath you was unsteady but you turned to find the source of Papyrus’ voice.

 

“HUMAN?” The tall skeleton reached out to steady you, glancing down at your dress. “OH, NO! YOU’VE GOTTEN KETCHUP ALL OVER YOUR FANCY CLOTHES! YOU MUST REALLY BE CAREFUL!”

 

You tried to steady yourself, gripping onto him for support but your grip was weakening. God, everything was starting to hurt. And you were growing cold. “Sans… Go get Sans.”

 

“SANS? BUT WHY?” Papyrus looked up and past you, his smile brightening. “OH, HELLO THERE! I DON’T THINK WE HAVE MET YET-“

 

Chief froze under Papyrus’ gaze, and Papyrus froze when he noticed Chief’s hand covered in the same red substance that was turning your blue dress a dark purple. You collapsed against him, your body sagging in his arms.

 

Black was encroaching around your vision, and you desperately tried to hold onto Papyrus. Slowly, he began to piece together the situation, and panic set in. He began talk to you, worry tailing his words, but they were lost on you.

 

Papyrus held onto you as your eyes slipped shut, and when he looked back up the other skeleton monster was gone. Anxious and scared, Papyrus did what you asked.

 

He called for Sans.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp. \\(￣< ￣)>


	16. In Which Ace has An Internal Revelation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You're in the hospital, and Ace isn't too happy about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Originally this chapter was supposed to be super long, BUT, I have decided to separate it for reasons.

It felt like you were underwater.

 

Way, deep down below the surface of consciousness.

 

There was shouting, initially just from Papyrus, but his voice died out and became lost in the clamor that soon came.

 

You were cold.

 

You were dizzy.

 

Someone was carrying you, but you couldn’t see because your face was shoved into their shoulder.

 

Someone screamed. It echoed out in your head and you blinked slowly, trying to hold your head up.

 

“what happened?!” Was that Sans? It sounded like him, but he was far away. Far, far away from you.

 

“I-I DON’T KNOW! I THINK SHE MIGHT HAVE GOTTEN HURT!” It was hard to confuse Papyrus’ voice with anyone else’s, and it came from above you. Was he carrying you? He was so sweet.

 

There was clamoring and movement. Someone bumped into you and a searing white pain spread from your abdomen, but you were too deep under the water to cry out. You just flinched.

 

“She needs to get to a hospital!” The gentle voice of the queen did little to soothe your mild panic.

 

Were you going to die? Is this was dying felt like? Tears gathered up at the edges of your eyes, your slowed heart twisting painfully.

 

You didn’t want to die! Not yet! Your life was good… You were finally happy!

 

Papyrus’ mortified face floated in and out of your view and you forced yourself to focus on him. Don’t lose him. Stay awake. Stay alert.

 

Another face entered your darkened vision. Cracks. Two of them. The white of his skull melded with Papyrus’ just slightly. You opened your mouth to speak, but words failed you long before they touched your lips.

 

“just hang on, baby girl,” he spoke, loud enough for you to hear but gently enough to soothe you. “just hang on.”

 

“I’ve called an ambulance, but they won’t be here in time!”

 

“someone call the doc!”

 

“OH, NO! BROTHER, HER EYES ARE CLOSING!” Papyrus sounded like he was crying. “SANS! WHAT DO I DO?!”

 

“stay with me, sweetheart! please, keep looking at me!”

 

It felt like you were underwater.

 

So very, very far away.

 

 

 

Hospital chairs were the worst. No number of pillows could make them any more comfortable than a rock, but Ace didn’t complain. Hell, Ace had hardly said a word since he’d arrived here.

 

In this hospital room.

 

In _your_ hospital room.

 

He’d hardly given himself enough time to take care of himself, the same shirt on his body from the party the day before. The doctors and nurses had tried to convince him to at least go home and get some rest, but he refused each and every time.

 

You needed him, and he would be here the moment you woke up.

 

The moment Gaster had shown up and taken you, Ace’s whole world had been in chaos. Insane, unexplained chaos. His soul was twisted up like a phone cord, and only got worse when he would think about the state you were in.

 

Your skin was so pale, so sick looking that he didn’t have to imagine your face after death; He’d seen it already. And it was mortifying. Your lips lost their rosy color, and your eyes were dark and glossy. He’d wanted to hold you, to take you but Papyrus hadn’t let up on your form. He was just as terrified, but seemingly didn’t want to let you go.

 

In moments, Gaster had appeared in the very room they stood in, experienced eyes instantly roving over your then unconscious form. The room full of nervous and scared monsters had quieted down to a hush as the tall scientist strode over to Papyrus.

 

“She is going into hypovolemic shock,” he had said, holding out his arms. His tone was so cold, so calculating. It held no emotion, and Gaster preferred it that way.

 

Papyrus gave him a wary look, his grip on his dear friend tightening considerably, but he said nothing.

 

Gaster’s determined expression softened, “I will give her the care she needs, my boy.”

 

The normally jovial skeleton glanced down to your pale face, his soul racing in his chest. “PLEASE,” he gulped, gently handing you over, “PLEASE SAVE HER.”

 

That had been exactly thirty-six hours ago. Ace counted down the minutes, the _seconds._

 

He was anxious. He was nervous.

 

Angry.

 

Enraged.

 

_Scared._

Scared he would never hear your laugh again. Scared he wouldn’t see you every day. Scared you’d be gone before he could tell you-

 

The door opened and Ace stood, almost knocking his chair over in the process. A rolling bed was pushed in by a few nurses, your unconscious form laying prone beneath a blanket. Tubes and wires stuck out from all over you, a fluid dripping down into and IV placed in the crook of your arm. You looked so small, so weak.

 

He hated it.

 

You weren’t small or weak.

 

You were bright and loud and amazing, and you didn’t deserve to even be lying in that damned bed!

 

He was angry again.

 

The tall, looming figure of Gaster entered the room, reading over something on a clipboard as he neared your bedside. The scientist didn’t even spare him a glance, and it made his magic boil. Ace strode over to him, “how is she doin’?”

 

Gaster ignored him, his phantasmal hands taking the clipboard. He was adjusting the IV, monitoring your heartrate, anything to keep his shaky hands busy. His brow was creased in concentration, mouth set in a hard line as he tugged the blanket down from your form, checking your wound for any complications.

 

Ace scowled, moving from his spot into the doctor’s line of vision. “gaster!”

 

The tall monster blinked, regarding him for a moment, before turning to his charts. Ace was ready to shout again when Gaster held up a hand, stopping his words.

 

“She will be fine,” he answered, voice albeit a little shaky, “She only requires rest.”

 

Furrowing his brow, Ace glanced down at your pale form. Your chest shallowly rose and fell, a sheen of sweat lining your forehead as you slept. His soul plummeted into his gut, feeling completely useless as he sat on the edge of the bed.

 

Part of him blamed himself for this. Whatever had happened to you took place right outside… Not thirty feet away from him. He should have stayed close, kept an eye on you. “when will she wake up?”

 

The doctor sighed, “A day, give or take. She’s lost a large amount of blood, and it has taken quite the toll. She will also need time to heal.”

 

Gaster left then, the nurses following behind him as he shut the heavy hospital door. A dreadful silence filled the room, the faint beeping of the heartrate monitor and machines just becoming background noise.

 

Studying your face, Ace reached out and gently took your hand. It was cold and clammy against his bones and it hurt. It hurt him so badly to see you this way, it hurt him to know he couldn’t do anything to help.

 

-*-

 

Ow.

 

Ow, ow.

 

A pained groan left your lips as a hot pain filled your body. You turned your head to the side, forcing your tired eyes open. Taking in the white walls of the new room, you felt your heart drop into your stomach.

 

Were… Were you in a hospital room?!

 

Shooting up wasn’t the best idea on your part, the searing pain in your side sending you back down into the sheets. A strained cry pushed through your lips, tears springing into your eyes.

 

Jesus, that hurt!

 

Frantically tugging your hospital gown up, you eyed the fresh gauze that was adhered to your skin. The flesh around the patch was red and itchy and irritated, and it all burned like hell. You were confused at first, but the memories had almost instantly flooded your mind.

 

The party. Chief. Your argument.

 

You sighed, wiping your tears away with one hand. You’d overstepped your boundaries with him, that was certain. He’d only wanted space, and you should have respected him enough to give it. But no. You just had to push him.

 

What were you even trying to prove? What would you have gotten out of making him talk to you? Chief was standoffish and particular about the company he kept, but he had good reason for it.

 

The door opening caught your attention and you looked up, catching Ace just as he walked through the door.

 

He glanced up, tired lights landing on your form and he froze. You stared at each other for a few moments, Ace’s soul thrumming loudly in his skull.

 

You chuckled uneasily, putting your gown back down in place. “H-Hey, Ace.”

 

His strides were long and hurried, placing his fresh cup of coffee down on the counter as he rushed to you. He was missing his leather jacket, his shirt wrinkled and the few buttons at the top undone. It was the shirt from the party you noticed, so you couldn’t have been here that long.

 

Ace hardly stopped at the edge of the bed, flinging his arms around you in a gentle embrace. He was silent, breathing in your scent as he comforted himself in the fact that you were awake and alert. And alive.

 

You winced but stayed silent as well, your arms coming up to grip onto the fabric of his shirt, your tired eyes slipping closed. You felt drained, your achy body sagging against his.

 

He leaned back, sitting on the bed but keeping his arms around you, leading you to lean into him. You found the way he dragged his phalanges through your hair soothing and you sighed, the hot pain in your side momentarily forgotten.

 

“how are you feeling?” he breathed out, his words making your hair shift.

 

“Like total trash,” you answered honestly, adjusting yourself against his collarbone. “But I’m okay. How long was I out?”

 

“’bout a day and a half from the time doc got you here.”

 

Your eyes shot open, leaning back looking him over. “Have you been here the whole time?!”

 

His easy-going smile was your answer.

 

“Why?!”

 

Pulling you back into him, he chuckled. “well someone had to be here in case you got yourself into more trouble.”

 

You flushed, your eyes falling shut again.

 

“do you need anything?”

 

You shook your head, a harsh pounding starting behind your eyes.

 

“you sure? i can go get ya some food.”

 

No, all you wanted was to rest. Shaking your head again, you sighed.

 

“ya want me to shut up?”

 

“Yes, please.”

 

He chuckled, running his hand up and down your back. The two of you sat there in silence, adjusting yourself every now and again if your side started to feel stiff. It had become bearable, and you chalked it up to the medication slowly dripping in your IV.

 

There was a rhythmic thrumming deep in his chest, muffled through the cloth of his shirt, but it still lulled you. Peeking your eyes open you noticed a soft yellow light shining through, whisps of magic drifting out and around your form. It was almost like the time Sweets had helped you sleep, the same warming and comforting sensation a welcome one.

 

Very carefully, Ace moved to lay you back down. He didn’t move from your side, however, still calling forth his magic to soothe you. You were slowly regaining color in your face, but that did little to deter him from staying put on the bed.

 

He had questions. Questions that no one could answer but you. Papyrus had been in a state of shock after entering the home cradling you, and hadn’t hardly spoken to anyone since. Other than you and Papyrus… There was no one else out there.

 

Had it been a stranger on the property? Someone who wanted to hurt you? A snarl rose in his chest, affecting the magic that lingered around you. Your face twisted in mild discomfort as the magic turned cold and bristling.

 

He needed to calm down… Everything was fine. You were fine. You’d be home soon.

 

The discomfort fell from your face, your features softening as you drifted to sleep once more. Ace ran his fingers through your soft locks, passing his thumb over your cheek every once in a while.

 

A tired, shaky sigh pressed through his teeth.

 

He loved you.

 

 _Stars_ , how he loved you.

 

Sometimes he hated it. He had no control over it. From the moment he was dropped into this world- your world- there had been an unexplainable force drawing him to you. He desperately needed to be around you, to be with you, to have you. The thought of you being with someone else, being in love with someone else... Well, just that simple though shattered his soul. 

 

Everything about you was addicting. The way your eyes lit up when you laughed, how your smile curled up a little higher on the right side, and the little movement you did with your hands when you were excited about something. He couldn't stop himself from wanting. Wanting all your smiles, your laughs, your tears. He wanted them all for himself. It was selfish, he knew. And he knew it couldn't be helped. 

 

He also knew that there was no way you could ever feel the same. You tolerated him at best, hardly acknowledging him on a normal day. He figured the reason you'd been so easy to hold now was because of the drugs in your system, dulling the pain in your side. Oh, stars, but you were so close. So very close to him, leaning into his touches, trusting him.

 

Scooting closer to you, he leaned over, his other hand coming around to caress your jaw. His magic still swirled and surrounded you, keeping you comfortable and pain-free. You sighed, lips parting as you leaned over into his hand. His thumb roamed across your lower lip, slowly and lovingly, and he found himself drawn to them. Fuck, he wanted to kiss you so badly...

 

But he wouldn't. He couldn't do that to you. Doing so would shatter what little trust you _did_ have for him, whether you remembered it or not. You meant too much. 

 

So, much to his chagrin, he moved upward, pressing his teeth to your forehead.

 

He loved you, that much he knew. He loved you so much.

 

He’d never tell you though, that’s not how he worked. He’d learned the hard way not to cross that line. He’d love you from afar, by himself, and that was good enough for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ALL THE MESS.
> 
> You're welcome.


	17. In Which You're Jealous of Muffet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You're jealous of Muffet, and Ace knows it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for my absence! I've been working my butt off at Disney, and it's been so hard to find time to write. Please forgive me!
> 
> Please enjoy this chapter!

“OH, HUMAN!” Papyrus was borderline sobbing when he entered your hospital room, bouquet of flowers in one hand and a balloon in the other. He almost dropped both as he strode over to you, wrapping you up in one of his huge bear hugs. “I WA-WAS SO WO-WO-WORRIED!”

 

You winced, the pain in your side becoming more annoying than anything now, but hugged him back. He was so tall you were lifted from the tiled floor, your feet dangling uselessly as he smothered you in affection.

 

“ARE YOU ALRIGHT? HOW ARE YOU FEELING? IS THERE ANYTHING YOU NEED? I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL GO TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH!”

 

You giggled, feeling the floor beneath your feet again and you pulled back from him. “I’m just fine, Pap. Gaster says I’ve been healing as expected, and I should get to come home soon!”

 

“OH, OH,” the tears started again, his grip on your shoulders tightening as he hugged you again, “THAT IS MOST WONDERFUL NEWS!”

 

Peeking over his shoulder, you noticed he didn’t come alone. Sans still stood in the doorway, looking rather uncomfortable. He had dark lines under his sockets, and he looked even less put together than normal.

 

Once Papyrus had set you down for the second time (you had to lay back on the bed, your side was on fire), Sans had finally walked through the threshold of the door. He cautiously neared the bed, as if he were approaching a dangerous animal, keeping his gaze down on the floor.

 

“Heya, bonehead,” you joked, attempting to lighten the mood.

 

“hey.” He stuffed his hands into his hoodie pockets, obviously unsure of what he should do. “how ya doin’?”

 

You chuckled, “Well, I’ve been better. Not every day you wake up in the hospital, y’know, stabbed and whatnot.”

 

“do,” he cleared his nonexistent throat, his brow creasing as he tried to keep a level head, “do you remember what happened?”

 

You stilled. Of course you remembered what happened… You remembered every moment, up to when Chief stabbed you out of what you hoped was fear. But… Should you tell Sans? What would he do? You’d kept what really happened under wraps, even when the doctors had come to talk to you. You didn’t know if you were protecting Chief by keeping quiet, but you knew that if word got out that he was the reason you were laid up in a hospital bed it wouldn’t go well for him.

 

You hummed, trying to steer him clear of that situation. “The last thing I remember is waking up here.”

 

He gauged you, searching your face for any hint, any smidge that you were lying. Sans was really good at reading people, you most of all. But all those days you spent with him had paid off, for you were able to satiate his judgmental eyes. “so, you don’t remember a thing?”

 

You shrugged, “Nope, sorry.”

 

“you don’t seem to upset that you were, y’know, stabbed and whatnot,” he retorted, mocking you.

 

You shrugged again, and you could tell that didn’t sit well with your skeletal buddy. His gaze became forlorn as he glanced back down at the floor. Pushing yourself up from your laying position, you swung your legs over the side of the bed.

 

“You wanna hug?”

 

“don’t patronize me,” he muttered, the lines under his sockets getting darker.

 

You pursed your lips, “Sans, I’m not patronizing anyone. Maybe I wanted a hug? Ever think of that?”

 

He inhaled a breath, preparing himself to say something, when you reached out and snagged him by the hoodie. He stumbled as he was pulled forward into your arms and you snuggled him. He accidentally bumped into your wounded side but it didn’t bother you much.

 

He mumbled something into your shoulder that you didn’t catch. “What was that?”

 

“…nothin’.”

 

Rolling your eyes, you shook him in your grasp. “C’mon, I’m near death, and you can’t tell me what you said?”

 

He went rigid at the mention of death but sighed, his hold on you tightening. “i said… i was scared.”

 

You fell silent, the joking moment passed, and you held him closer.

 

“are you sure you don’t remember anythin’?”

 

God, you hated lying to Sans… But you couldn’t do that to Chief. You had to talk to him, to sort this out… “I’m positive.”

 

He sighed, turning his skull into your neck. “when can you blow this place?”

 

“Gaster said I should be able to leave in the next few days,” you rested your cheek against the top of his skull, “I’m ready to go home. I miss my cat.”

 

“wow, i come in second place to a furball?”

 

“Hey, he’s fuzzy. And he’s got ears.”

 

“ah, touché.”

 

-*-

 

Over the last few days you stayed in the hospital, you’d acquired more and more visitors.

 

Asgore and Toriel had paid you a visit, Frisk bounding in with a potted (and very disgruntled) Flowey. Toriel had brought you some cinnamon butterscotch pie, and the ushered that you eat it. Apparently, it had healing properties. You didn’t care, you ate it anyway. Toriel was one heck of a cook.

 

Alphys and Undyne had come a few times. Alphys brought her laptop and they both snuggled with you on the bed, watching some anime or movies, making jokes or telling stories.

 

Chad showed up, a huge bear with a heart that read ‘GET WELL SOON’ in his arms. He stayed with you most of the day, and over time he seemed to become more relaxed in your presence. He’d started working with Gaster, and you could tell the scientist was most likely putting him through hell.

 

Ace was a frequent visitor, hovering around you more than anyone else. He’d brought Sweets along often, but he was usually there, hanging out in the chair next to your bed, running errands for you, making sure you had what you needed.

 

Most of the monsters from the party checked in, either in person or through phone calls, video chats, or even just by word of mouth. Mettaton had somehow acquired your phone number, and called you everyday.

 

You were grateful for all of the compassion the monsters had shown to you, saying your thank yous and being appreciative.

 

Chief never came, though. The fact made you sad, but you couldn’t bring yourself to call him. You didn’t want to be that person. ‘Hey, you kinda put me in the hospital. Can you come see the damage?’ You shook your head. That wasn’t something you wanted to do to him.

 

The day came when you were finally released from ~~hell~~ the hospital, and you couldn’t wait to get home! You needed a shower and needed a nap in your own bed, dammit!

 

Papyrus had escorted you all the way down to the lobby, his red hotrod idling quietly in the roundabout. It went without saying that he would pick you up, considering he was the only one with a license and a car. Well, Sans had a motorcycle, but that was a ride you could wait on.

 

The ride home was smooth and quiet and you were exhausted. You’d arrived home before you even knew it! Papyrus gingerly helped you from the car, walking you up to your building. Gosh, he was just too sweet sometimes.

 

“You’re a true gentleskeleton, Pap,” you smiled, leaning into his strong form.

 

“OF COURSE,” he boasted, “WHAT KIND OF FRIEND WOULD I BE IF I WAS NOT HERE FOR YOU?”

 

Smile strained, your eyes glanced at the door across the hall from yours.

 

Chief’s door.

 

You silently wondered if he was there, just inside the door. You were a little bitter, but tried to ignore it. He’d visit you… Surely he would. Whenever he was ready.

 

The door to your apartment swung open and you were met with a jovial Sweets. “HUMAN!” he cried, wrapping his arms around your midsection. “I MISSED YOU SO MUCH!”

 

You sucked in a breath as he accidentally elbowed you on your injured side. He snapped his face up to you and instantly realized his mistake, releasing you and apologizing.

 

You chuckled, rubbing at the sore spot before you planted a kiss to his forehead. “It’s alright. I missed you too, my little Hero.”

 

His skull flushed a bright blue and he grinned, taking your hand and leading you inside, Papyrus entering after you. Your apartment was incredibly clean, everything perfect and in its own place. Sweets had apparently done some cleaning, and you were thankful for that. You placed your bag on the table, a tired yawn pressing through your lips.

 

“YOU MUST BE VERY EXHAUSTED,” Papyrus concluded, taking your hand and leading you back towards your room, “YOU MUST REST!”

 

You chuckled, watching as Sweets skittered in front of you to open your door. Wow, he even cleaned your room! How did you land yourself such amazing friends, you wondered. The little skeleton pulled back the comforter on your bed, ready to assist if needed.

 

“Thank you.” You eased yourself into your bed, finally able to relax in a familiar setting. “Thanks to both of you. I really appreciate this.”

 

They both saluted you (what), exclaiming, “A HERO MUST ALWAYS ANSWER THE CALL!”

 

You giggled, sinking down into your warm bed. Papyrus and Sweets asked once more if there was anything you needed, to which you shook your head, saying you only needed rest.

 

“OH!” The taller skeleton skittered from the room, only to return moments later with a pill bottle and a glass of water. “DOCTOR GASTER INFORMED ME YOU MUST TAKE THESE. THEY WILL HELP YOU HEAL FASTER!”

 

You scrunched up your nose. “I don’t need those, Pap. It doesn’t hurt that bad.”

 

“TUT-TUT!” Sweets placed his hands on his hipbones. “YOU MUST FOLLOW THE DOCTOR’S ORDERS, (NAME)! WE WANT YOU TO GET BETTER!”

 

Shrinking under their determined gazes, you relented. “Okay, fine. I’ll take the medicine.”

 

Pleased, Papyrus handed you the glass as well as two of the pills. Yeesh, they were huge… And glittery? Well, whatever. You downed the pills, handing the glass back to Papyrus, and wormed your way down into your bed.

 

Sweets placed your phone on the bedside table. “IF YOU NEED ANYTHING, I AM JUST A CALL AWAY!”

 

You smiled, another yawn escaping you, as your eyes began to feel heavy. Was that medicine supposed to make you drowsy? Why was it happening so fast? You felt a small dip in the bed as an orange, furry face peeked into your view.

 

Felix butted his head up against your cheek, a soft pur coming from his chest as he made himself comfortable. You pulled your hand from under the comforter and stroked him, his fur beneath your fingers therapeutic.

 

You weren’t sure when Papyrus and Sweets had left, but you fell asleep soon after Felix had joined you on the bed. Your rest was dreamless and silent, but the pain was definitely forgotten, only a faint buzzing in your skin to remind you of what had happened.

 

-*-

The door to your room creaked open, the light from the hallway spilling in and over your slumbering face. Furrowing your brow, you turned your head away, mumbling something under your breath.

 

The tall form in the doorway chuckled, stirring you more out of your sleep. Turning back over, you rubbed the sleep from your eyes. The medication was still heavy in your veins, and it made your movements slow and shaky.

 

“heya, girly,” Ace’s voice drifted into your head, “how’re you feelin’?”

 

You grumbled, shoving the blankets from you. Your body felt stiff and achy, how long had you been asleep? Felix darted from the bed as you sat up, fleeing between Ace’s legs and out into the apartment.

 

“I feel like I’ve been run over by a thousand trucks,” you replied, your voice heavy with sleep. You blinked a few times, looking over to him. “Where’ve you been?”

 

“work,” he stated, shuffling into your room.

 

“Work?” You snorted. “Since when did you get a job?”

 

“hey, don’t sound so surprised. figured i could help out around here,” he stopped next to you, hands stuffed into his jean pockets, “since you were outta commission and all.”

 

Pouting at his joke, you swung your legs over the side of your bed. “Ha ha. Very funny.” Your attempt to stand failed, only able to balance yourself for a few seconds before your knees gave out.

 

Ace caught you, one arm wrapped around your back while the other grabbed you by the waist. Your head lolled side to side and your vision swam, holding onto the skeleton for support. He chuckled, holding you close while you tried to stand on your own. “hey, now, be careful. can’t have you fallin’ for me just yet.”

 

“Trust me, that won’t be an issue,” you retorted, trying to get your bearings but your feet wouldn’t cooperate. “Ugh, could you take me to the living room? It’s stuffy in here, and I can’t stand on my own-!”

 

Ace promptly scooped his arm beneath your legs, sweeping you up into his arms. You leaned into him, your hands joining together behind his neck. You inhaled softly, catching the scent of motor oil and gasoline on him. Had he gotten a job as a mechanic? There was a smudge of something black on his jaw, and without thinking you brought your hand up and attempted to wipe it away with your thumb.

 

Ace almost stopped in his place, your touch sending tingles all the way down to his soul. Instead his grip on you tightened and he turned his skull to you, keeping his voice down as he passed Sweets’ door, “that irresistible, huh?”

 

You flushed, “Wh-uh, no, nu-uh. You just- There was-“ He rose a brow bone at you, his smirk rising higher into his cheek. You huffed, crossing your arms over your chest. “Nevermind.”

 

He’d made it to the living room and you flinched when he set you down on the sofa.

 

“you hurting?”

 

You were, the pain coming back tenfold. “Yeah… Doctor Gaster gave me some meds, but they make me super sleepy if I take two.”

 

Ace disappeared into your kitchen and you heard some rattling, a cabinet opening, and the faucet turning on. He reappeared, the moonlight spilling in through the window bouncing off of his pristine white bones.

 

“here,” he held out a single pill, “take it.”

 

You gave him a look, leaning away. “No, they make me sleepy. I’m tired of sleeping.”

 

He knelt down, forcing the tablet into your hand. “either you take it on your own, or i’ll make ya.”

 

You narrowed your eyes at him, daring him silently to try. He wouldn’t force you… Would he? His harsh stare bore into your very soul, and for a split moment you could definitely see the part of him that was Gaster.

 

Sighing, you acquiesced, popping the pill into your mouth and swallowing it with the water. You handed the glass back to him but he didn’t take it.

 

“open.”

 

You scoffed, opening your mouth so he could look inside. “See? I’m not hiding it.”

 

He smirked and took the glass from your hand as he stood. “good girl.”

 

Arms crossed over your chest, you leaned back into the couch. The pill had taken affect almost immediately, the warming sensation of the medicine flowing through you. The couch dipped down as Ace sat next to you, his arm going behind you to lay across the back of the sofa. He snatched up the remote to your tv, switching it on to some Lifetime movie that was playing at this ungodly hour.

 

The actors on tv seemed to be going  through some kind of romantic squabble, their chattering filling the silence between you two.

 

You leaned away, the medicine making your head spin. “You smell like a lawnmower.”

 

He chuckled, “i work on cars, babe, not in a perfume store.”

 

A small smile passed over your lips and you looked back over to him, running your fingers through your knotted hair. “You didn’t have to get a job, you know… I don’t pay rent, and groceries aren’t that expensive.”

 

“it’s no big deal. figured it’d be a better way to spend my time,” he answered, leaning his head back against the couch, pretending to be interested in the movie. “y’know, since you try so hard to shake me and all.”

 

“I… I do not,” you defended, “I just thought you’d want to make some new friends. You’re always cooped up here. I know that would drive me crazy.”

 

His sockets slipped shut, a slight warmth raising to his cheekbones. “nah, i… doesn’t really bother me.”

 

You nodded, studying his upturned skull closely. He seemed… Off today. You weren’t sure what it was, but there was definitely something going on. Something was bothering him deep down. “Ace?”

 

He grunted, indicating that he was listening.

 

“Is everything alright?”

 

“course,” he responded. But that answer wasn’t good enough.

 

Carefully turning yourself to face him more, you placed a hand on his chest, the leather of his jacket cool and smooth beneath your touch. He froze, his sockets peeking open as that warmth on his face intensified.

 

“Ace, you can talk to me,” you pushed, “Anytime, day or night. I’m always here to listen.”

 

He turned his skull towards you, something foreign in his gaze. It was fleeting, replaced with a smug mask as he chuckled. “seems like you just like touching me, doll.”

 

Augh! You snatched your hand away, furrowing your brow. “Seriously? I’m concerned about you, and all you can do is flirt?!”

 

He shrugged, enjoying the way your face lit up as you berated him.

 

“You’re hopeless,” you muttered, momentarily forgetting your weak legs as you pushed yourself up from the sofa, “I’m going back to bed-!”

 

“(name), wait-!”

 

Your legs gave out almost immediately and you were sent toppling down to the floor. Ace reached out and gripped onto your wrist, but you’d ended up bringing him down with you, the both of you landing on the wooden floor with a loud ‘THUD’.

 

The pain in your side, although dulled, washed over you like a tide and you had to hold in a cry. Your hands flew to cover the bandaged area as if your touch would make the pain stop.

 

“shit, shit,” Ace muttered from above you, “shit, doll, ‘m sorry! did i hurt you??”

 

“N-No, it’s okay,” you bit out, “I’m okay…”

 

The tears that sprung to your eyes cascaded down the sides of your face but… They kept coming. They kept coming and they wouldn’t stop. You _weren’t_ okay. You were the farthest from okay you’d ever been. Someone you’d thought to be your friend hurt you, _stabbed_ you and just left you there.

 

“I-I,” you hiccupped, your eyes screwed shut, “I don’t… I don’t understand.”

 

Ace watched silently as you began to cry, one of your hands reaching up to cradle your head.

 

“Wh-What did I do??” God, he didn’t even come to see you in the hospital! Did he really hate you that much?? Did you push him that far?! “I-I just- I wanted to-!”

 

Pulling himself into a sitting position, he gingerly pulled your sobbing form into his arms. You collapsed weakly against him and scrabbled to grip onto his coat, shoving your face into his chest as you cried.

 

He was so conflicted. What was he supposed to do? He didn’t even know what you were crying about! Obviously, now wasn’t the time to ask, but he needed to do… Something. Should he take you back to bed? Should he just stay here? Did you want to be alone? Should you even be alone??

 

“c’mon, sweetheart,” he mumbled, pulling you up to your feet. Your legs were still weak and you clung to him, too far gone in your unhappiness to do anything else. You stumbled as he tried to lead you towards the hallway but he swept you up again, opting to carry you instead.

 

“I don’t wanna go to b-bed,” you sobbed, shoving your face into his jacket, “I d-don’t wanna do anything…”

 

He sighed, turning to retreat back to the living room and sitting with you on the couch. He just held you, listening to you break down.

 

“I just… I just wanted to make him feel happy,” you confessed, just babbling now, “I just wanted to be there for him… To b-be his friend… But he-he…”

 

Wait… Who were you talking about?

 

He had questions… But decided against it and just rubbed soothing circles into your back. Your crying soon dribbled down into just a few hiccups and sniffles, but you didn’t move from his embrace. Mostly due to the drug that had made your body feel as heavy as lead.

 

“Ugh… I suck…”

 

“what?”

 

“I suuuuck!” Your head lolled against his collarbone, tired eyes glaring over at the television. “I suck. I’m the suckiest person to ever suck.”

 

He chuckled, trying to keep it quiet as you bantered yourself. He ran his fingers through your knotted hair, gently tugging out any tangles. “nah, some would say you’re pretty great.”

 

“You’re just saying that cuz you’re my friend.”

 

“oh, so i’ve been upgraded from annoying neighbor to friend?”

 

“Yeah, well, at least you’re the neighbor who won’t stab me.”

 

Ace’s soul stopped in its tracks as red flags flew up in his mind. Were… Were you saying that… Anger flared up in his magic, making it bristle all along his bones. He was having a hard time keeping his breathing normal, and his other hand gripped onto the arm of the sofa so hard it could have shattered and crumbled beneath his strength.

 

A sleepy chuckle caught his attention as you were focused on the movie. Your arms were locked around him in an odd sort of hug, your legs draped over his lap with your head leaned up against his collar bone. On a normal day, he would have been soaking this up like a sponge, but…

 

Chief stabbed you. _He w_ as the one who did this, and he hadn’t even checked on you! He hadn’t thought it odd that he’d been absent lately, but now it honestly all made sense. Stars, the moment Ace saw him he would-

 

The feeling of your fingers on his spine almost sent him sitting straight up, sockets wide and face bright yellow. You wavered a little bit, but clung to him, your fingertips gently grazing the bones beneath his sweater.

 

He tried to glance down at you, but you shoved your face into his neck, your soft lips grazing the surface of his vertebrae. He gently tried to pry you away from him, each touch you landed on him sending sparks all over his body.

 

You blinked up at him twice, both blinks very long and slow. The medicine was obviously taking effect.

 

“Ace?”

 

He gulped, chancing himself with a, “y-yea?”

 

“Do you like Muffet?”

 

“what?”

 

You huffed, taking your hands and placing them stubbornly on his chest. “Do. You. Like. Muffet?”

 

He gave an uneasy chuckle. “d-doll, i don’t… uh…”

 

You sniffled, “You do!”

 

You started to retreat back against the arm of the couch when Ace moved forward, reaching out to you. “no! no, doll, no i don’t!”

 

“Then why do you always want to hang out with her? Is it cuz she has six arms? Or that she dresses nice all the time??” You gestured down to your oversized sweatshirt in shame. “I can dress nice, too!” But the longer you looked at your sweatshirt, the more upset you seemed to become. Huge tears welled up in your eyes.

 

“oh, stars, darlin’,” he mumbled, pulling you close and hugging you, “don’t worry about muffet.”

 

“I can learn to talk to spiders, or-or,” you hiccupped, “I could try to spin webs. Like Spiderman. He made his webs in a lab, or at least one of the Spidermans did…”

 

God, he wanted to laugh. Were you jealous of the spider monster? And had you been hiding it so long it came out while you were high on prescription drugs?

 

 You leaned back, a defeated look on your face as you ran your fingers over the patterns on his sweater. “Oh, who am I kidding? I can’t do anything cool like Muffet… No wonder you like her…”

 

“what? sweetheart, that’s crazy.” He tucked some of your hair behind your ear, making you look at him. “muffet’s cool and all, but she ain’t the one i like.”

 

This seemed to deflate you more. “So you do like someone…”

 

Oooh, he could have fun with this. “i do.”

 

You nibbled on your lip, eyes focused on his sweater. “What are they like?”

 

“well,” he started, leaning back against the couch, bringing you with him, “she’s real smart, and she’s real sassy, too, which i dig a lot. she’s really kind, but she ain’t no pushover. she’s one of the strongest people i’ve ever known, even when people aren’t so nice to her.”

 

“So why aren’t you with her?”

 

He shrugged, glancing up at the ceiling. “well, i feel like she doesn’t like bein’ around me. probably thinks i’m annoying, ya know?”

 

“Well… That’s not entirely true.” You slipped your hands underneath his leather jacket, cold fingers searching for warmth. “I mean, yeah, sometimes you can be a little much, but…”

 

His soul quickened a bit, “but..?”

 

“You’re nice.” You cuddled into him, finding the perfect way to sit with your head on his chest. “You act like you’re all big and tough, and I think that’s the Gaster part of you, but… You really care about others. Like when you helped Sweets when his arm got hurt, and you’ve been there for me through this whole mess…”

 

“(name).”

 

“Hm?”

You glanced blearily up at him, barely getting the chance to look him in the face before he slipped his hand to the back of your neck, pulling you close enough to press his lips to yours. Your eyes automatically dropped shut and you just _melted_ into his touch, the warmth and tenderness a welcome sensation.

 

Your arms drifted up to rest around his shoulders, making it easy for the two of you to recline on the couch amidst your kiss. He propped himself up with one arm, the other hand running through your hair, touching your cheek, ghosting his fingertips over your collar, _anything._

 

Bringing your hand around, you gently ran your thumb over his high cheekbone, the touches causing him to pull away from the kiss and nuzzle into your hand. He pressed little kisses along your palm, eliciting a little chuckle from you.

 

He shouldn’t be doing this… He knew this was a breach of your trust, but… Seeing you look at him that way? It was worth all the gold in the world.

 

“Better make sure your mystery woman doesn’t know about that… Or the first kiss.” You smiled sadly, letting your hand fall away from his face. “Might ruin your chances, you know?”

 

Hm, so you really didn’t know who he was talking about… Part of that saddened him, but maybe it was for the best. He smirked, “does she have to know about the next one?”

 

You quirked a brow, “The next one? Ace, if you’re wanting a chance with this girl, you might not wanna-“

 

“she won’t know,” he leaned over you again, pressing another kiss to your lips and you smiled against it, your fingers finding the coolness of his jacket rather refreshing. _‘more like, you won’t remember this…’_

 

When Ace pulled away again, you pulled him down to lay against you. You sighed, your body tired and numb, your emotions all awry. You just wanted sleep.

 

He chuckled, “so, guess ‘m stayin’ here tonight?”

 

You nodded, your face pressed up against his neck again.

 

He reached behind him and yanked down a blanket that had been tossed over the back of the couch, effortlessly spreading it over the both of you. You snuggled into him, eyes closed with content as you sighed once more.

 

“You still smell like a lawnmower.”

 

“good night, doll.”


	18. Update

Hello, my wonderful Readers,

 

This is just to update you on what is happening in my life. I won't drag it on, but I'll try to make it as precise as I can. This has mention alcohol abuse and potential drug abuse.

 

This is me reaching out for help.

 

Life has been hard. 

 

My whole adolescence I have been plagued with my awful neighbors, Depression and Anxiety.

 

These neighbors are usually very easy to ignore. I use my family, my friends, my fans... anything I can to take my mind off of these horrible entities.

 

But a few weeks ago, I just couldn't.

 

Because, you see, Depression and Anxiety exist on two opposite sides of the mental health spectrum. 

 

Depression is quiet, silently sitting in the back of your mind. It makes even the brightest days a nightmare. I look in the mirror and hate what I see. I draw and I feel nothing for it, just scribbles on paper. My favorite movies, songs, books... they don't excite me anymore. They don't bring me joy. That's Depression.

 

Anxiety is loud. Always screaming in my face that o can do better, I can be better, but then kicking me down when I try. It takes my lungs and twists them, draining the air from my body and the strength from my heart. It leaves me heaving on the bathroom floor when no one is around. It leads me to drinking away my pain until it's nothing but a dull buzz. It tells me the world will go on turning without me here. That is Anxiety.

 

And these two live together in my head, screaming and crying and scratching at me. Constantly. And I can usually block them out.

 

But a few weeks ago, they got in.

 

And a few weeks ago, I almost went to bed and wouldn't have woken up the next morning, an empty bottle of pills and a half a glass of wine next to my bed.

 

I'll tell you something, I do not hold love for myself. Not one bit. Maybe I did, years ago, but who knows? 

 

And I know that I have a good life. I have friends and family who love me. I have a wonderful job. I have a man who would give his own life for mine. But that doesn't stop these thoughts from plaguing me at night, for making me sob until my chest feels so empty it hurts, for etching scars into my skin that will never fully heal.

 

But I know I can't give up.

 

So, my dear Readers, this is my apology for being gone so long.

 

This is my thank you for sticking with me.

 

And this is me promising to do better. I have decided to search for help, whether it be therapy or something else, I know I have to do better.

 

So please, please... Don't give up on me yet.

 

I love you all,

Brit

 

 


	19. In Which You Are Asked Out On A Date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You get a surprise visitor!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HEY. HI. Hello!
> 
> I'm not dead, nor am I abandoning this fic!
> 
> As most of you know, I've been having some troubled times. And it definitely has been taking a toll on me. I definitely want to get back into my writing, so please be patient as I get back into the groove of things! Thank you everyone who has been so amazingly supportive!

He fucked up.

 

Stars, he _fucked up!_

Chief was shaking, his back to the door to his apartment, his skull down in his hands. The heels of his palms dug into his sockets and they stung, long dried from the tears of shame and guilt. He’d hardly moved from this spot, only to scrub and scrub and _scrub_ his bones over and over, the sick warmth of your blood on his hands still haunting him.

 

No one had come to bother him, and for that he was thankful. Hell, he hadn’t even gotten as much as a phone call or a text message. He groaned, leaning his skull back against the door with a dull ‘thunk’. He had to do something… Fuck, anything! He wanted to apologize, to turn back time, to confess to everyone what he did… But the possibility of seeing the fear in your eyes again glued him to his spot.

 

He just couldn’t believe that he’d-

 

There were muffled voices from the other side of his door and he froze completely still. He lifted his skull up, his magic pulsing in his bones as he tried to listen.

_“AH! HERE WE ARE, HOME SWEET SOME!”_

Chief turned his skull to the side, pressing it against the door. Of course, the loud voice belonged to none other than this universe’s Papyrus.

 

A soft chuckle wafted through the wood, _“You’re a true gentleskeleton, Pap.”_

It was you. A whole new wave of guilt washed over him like a tide. Stars, you sounded so tired, so worn out…

 

_"OF COURSE! WHAT KIND OF FRIEND WOULD I BE IF I WERE NOT HERE FOR YOU?"_

There was an uncomfortable silence and Chief suddenly felt as if someone were staring at him. A guilty chill struck down his spine and he pulled himself to his feet. It would take no effort at all, absolutely none, to just open the door.

 

He lifted his hand, stalling it inches from the doorknob.

 

But... What would he say?

 

What _could_ he say?

 

Absolutely no words he could think of would make any of what he did any better. Would you even want to see him?

 

There was a painful twisting sensation in his ribcage, one he could only relate to as heartache. He dropped his hand back down to his side, listening as Sweets greeted you and as your door shut.

 

He lifted his palms to his skull, cradling his sockets. There was an unfamiliar sting in them, and no matter how hard he tried, how much he rubbed, the sting wouldn't go away.

 

-*-

 

_Tak tak tak._

Ace furrowed his brow bone, turning into the warmth that covered his resting form. His arm fell from the back of the couch, fitting nicely against the curve of your back.

 

_Tak-tak, tak-tak._

A rolling growl reverberated in his ribcage, the incessant knocking beginning to grate his nerves. Didn’t whoever it was get the hint?

 

 _Tak-tak._ “(Name)? Are you there?”

 

Ace’s lights appeared in his sockets then.

 

It was the human boy, Chad.

 

The human boy who seemed to have a mild fixation on you.

 

Glancing down, he noted how the knocking didn’t stir you in the slightest from your sleep. He was grateful, seeing as you were exhausted from your body attempting to heal itself. You’d gained back some of your color, but your skin was still pale and the bags beneath your eyes were very prominent.

 

Almost instantly Ace’s magic began to boil, as seeing you in your weakened state only brought back the memories of the previous night. Of how you confessed that Chief had been the one to harm you. To leave you this way.

 

The knocking came again and Ace resisted the urge to groan. Any louder and you’d surely wake. Slowly, _so slowly,_ he wormed his way out of your grasp. You twitched but settled back down onto the sofa, turning your head to face away from the sunlight that peered in through the blinds. Ace gently covered your body with the blanket, his normal grin replaced with a tender smile.

 

“(Name)?”

 

Aaaaaand, it’s gone.

 

Sighing, the skeleton monster strode over to the door, whipping it open.

 

Chad visibly jumped, hiding something behind his back as his eyes went wide. “O-Oh! Hi, there, Ace!”

 

Ace was intrigued at the boy’s flustered nature, the shade of his face almost matching that of his hair. He didn’t say anything though, instead choosing to lean against the frame of the door, his arms crossing over his chest as he just stared lazily at Chad.

 

This seemed to just enhance Chad’s nervous actions, seeming to shake under Ace’s simple gaze. A strained silence fell between the two, one that Ace found highly amusing.

 

Chad cleared his throat before opening his mouth to speak. “I-Is… Is (Name) here?”

 

Quirking a brow, Ace chuckled. “well this is her place, isn’t it?”

 

The human shrunk down, casting his eyes to the floor. He began to sputter his words, “W-Well, I mean, I just… Um…”

 

As Chad shuffled and moved, there was a muffled crinkling coming from behind him. Tilting his head, Ace attempted to get a look. “whatcha got back there?”

 

Chad stiffened, the crinkling coming to a quick halt. “W-What? Uh, nothing! It’s nothing. Nothing at all!”

 

Straightening up, Ace stuffed his hands into his pockets. His sockets narrowed as he silently judged the boy. “doesn’t sound like nothin’, kid.”

 

“It’s my lunch! Just my lunch!” Chad took a step back, eyes wide as his face turned ten shades redder. “S-Speaking of lunch, I’m late for work!”

 

“oh, yeah? better get goin’ then,” Ace supported, stepping towards him, his lazy grin becoming more sinister as he leaned over the trembling boy, “gaster doesn’t have a lot of patience, y’know. doesn’t take to kindly to being late either.”

 

Chad squeaked, bringing a bouquet of flowers around to somewhat shield himself from the tall skeleton.

 

Wait… Flowers?

 

Brows knitting together, Ace glared at the bouquet of roses as if they had personally offended him. His grin became strained as he peered over the roses, his lights boring into Chad’s very soul.

 

“Ace?”

 

Now it was both of their turn to jump, your voice breaking through the thick silence. Ace whipped around, sockets wide, “sweetheart, what are you doin’ up?”

 

You tugged your sweater down over your hands, a slight chill running through your body. Although you felt cold and exhausted, you managed a smile. “Well I heard voices,” you peeked over his shoulder, eyes landing on the other person outside your apartment, “Chad?”

 

Again, the boy’s face lit up bright red and he hurried to hide the flowers behind his back. “(Name)! Hi!”

 

Offering a gentle smile, you shuffled around Ace to properly greet your friend. The skeleton turned to the side, leaning against the doorframe again, but kept his eyes on the trembling human before you.

 

Chuckling, you subconsciously began to run your fingers through your knotted locks. “Sorry I don’t look the best, Doctor Gaster gave me some pills that knock me on my ass, but it helps with the pain.”

 

Chad grinned, visibly relaxing, “I think you look great, and it’s nice to see you up and around.”

 

A small giggle shook your shoulders, “Aww, thank you! That’s really sweet!”

 

“Oh, uh,” nervously, he brought the bouquet back around, shakily holding them out to you, “These… These are for you.”

 

Your tired smile only grew as you gently took the wrapped roses from his hands. You couldn’t tell if it was the exhaustion, or if you were honestly truly moved, but tears pricked at your eyes. “Oh, Chad,” you squeaked, feeling your throat slightly closing up, “That’s so nice… I don’t think anyone has ever gotten roses for me before.”

 

Ace rolled his eyelights, the whole situation playing out before him putting him in a sour mood. Not only did the brat have to wake him from his slumber with you, but now he was bringing you flowers?

 

What, was he trying to court you?

 

Ace stalled, his magic pounding in his skull. It seemed as if the world fell silent, his moment of clarity drowning out whatever was being said around him.

 

He _was_ trying to court you! The sputtering, the coloration of his face, the flowers… And look at you! Your rosy cheeks, your smile, your dewy eyes. You were falling for it! You were falling for his annoying blubbering!

 

A growl filtered through his ribcage, low enough for you not to hear, but loud enough that it bounced around his chest cavity. His magic bristled and he cut his eyes over to tune back into the conversation.

 

Chad shuffled his feet, his demeanor becoming much more reserved. “Listen, (Name), I know this might seem sudden…”

 

Wait.

 

“And I know you probably aren’t feeling the best right now…”

 

Oh, no.

 

“But, I just have to ask…”

 

Ace clenched his fists against his sweater, twisting the fabric tightly in his phalanges.

 

Chad cleared his throat, his voice coming out shaky and uncertain, “W-Would you… Go on a date with me?”

 

A tiny gasp broke through your lips as you cradled the bouquet of roses to your chest. A splash of scarlet gradually covered your cheeks, and you struggled to find your words. God, how long had it been since you were actually asked on a date? You had your outings with Sans every now and again but…

 

Behind you, Ace had long since past the threshold of his cool and aloof demeanor. Unable to stomach hearing your answer (judging by your actions, you were sure to say yes), he moved to swipe his jacket from the couch.

 

He didn’t need to be here. Hell, he shouldn’t have been here in the first place. Should’ve just gone home, like he’d planned. Whatever you did with your time, or whoever you did it with, shouldn’t matter to him.

 

“I’m sorry.”

 

Chad blinked, confusion in his eyes.

 

Ace froze in the middle of tugging his jacket on, sockets slightly widened.

 

You offered Chad a smile, one that was tired and slightly pained but still kind. “Really, thank you so much for the flowers, and for checking up on me, but,” you cast your eyes to the side, huffing out a short sigh, “I can’t really think about dating anyone right now.”

 

Visibly deflated, Chad just uttered, “Oh…”

 

“It’s just,” you started, taking a step towards him, “There’s so much going on. It wouldn’t be fair to you, especially with how busy my schedule is.” Reaching out, you grabbed his hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “Maybe some other time?”

 

His face beamed then, his freckles raising with his smile. “Yeah, maybe.”

 

You gave him a small hug, bidding him farewell as he dashed off, hoping he hadn’t angered the tall scientist he worked for because of his tardiness.

 

Lips still curled in a small smile, you kicked your door shut and gazed down at the roses. A small hum left you as you rounded into your kitchen, speaking absentmindedly to the skeleton standing stock still in your living room. “You know, I can’t remember the last time anyone got me anything, let alone flowers.”

 

Silently Ace moved to stand in the doorway of your kitchen, eyelights watching as you shuffled around the cabinets, mumbling about a vase.

 

“you said no.”

 

You cast a glance over to him, gently placing an old, blue vase on the counter top. “Hm?”

 

Ace blinked, as if he had forgotten what he said. “to the kid. you said no.”

 

Flushing, you turned your attention back to the roses, carefully tugging at the plastic sheet that bound them all together. “Well… Like I said, there’s just so much happening…”

 

Silence fell between the two of you, your attention still on the flowers, Ace’s lights never leaving you.

 

“Also, I haven’t had much luck in relationships,” you rambled, retrieving a pair of scissors from a drawer. Carefully snipping the ends of the roses, you continued, “Besides, he works for Gaster now, and I’m pretty sure there’s something against dating coworkers.”

 

The tall skeleton monster neared you, keeping quiet as he did so.

 

You turned to look up at him, face still flushed with slight embarrassment. He just stared at you, as if you’d grown two heads. What was his deal? Shifting under his gaze, you huffed, “What?”

 

Ace’s attention flickered to your mouth, how your lips were slightly pouty and puckered out. Instantly he wanted to kiss them again, to feel your soft skin against his cold bones. He could imagine it, right there, right where you stood. He’d push you back against the counter, one hand on your hip, one entangled in your hair. You’d place your hands against his chest, fingers dancing over his ribs as they twisted in his sweater. Then he’d whisper how much he loved you, and how he wanted you almost every minute of every day. So badly it was nearly killing him. In a perfect world, you’d smile, whispering sweet nothings to him. You might call him an idiot. But then he’d kiss you, pulling you as close as he possibly could, stealing your breath away-

 

“Ace?”

 

He blinked, pulling himself back into the present. “wha?”

 

Cocking a brow, you turned your attention back to snipping your roses and placing them into the vase, speaking to him over your shoulder, “I lost you for a second there. You okay?”

 

Ace swallowed, pushing his emotions down as he normally did, slapping a normal smirk across his face. “aw, lookat you, carin’ about little old me.” He slid over to the counter, leaning against it just enough to be in your line of vision. “if i didn’t know any better, i’d think you caught feelin’s for me. maybe that’s the reason you said no to your little friend?”

 

You snorted, “In your dreams, bone boy.”

 

“oh, without a doubt, doll,” he purred, just loud enough for you to hear.

 

Rolling your eyes, you turned to your sink and flipped the tap on, filling the vase about halfway with water. Then you paused. “Wait, what time is it?”

 

Ace blinked, confused at your sudden change of topic. “uh, like nine? why?”

 

“Shouldn’t Sweets be awake by now? If he’s anything like Papyrus, he would be up at the crack of dawn, right?”

 

“oh, he didn’t tell you?”

 

You cast a perplexed look over to him, “Didn’t tell me what?”

 

Hoisting himself up onto the counter, Ace shot you a grin, “little blue got himself a job, too. works down the street at a coffee shop, makin’ muffins an’ cupcakes and the like.”

 

What? Sweets got a job? When did that even happen?? You felt a little sad, you had hoped you could spend some time with him today… “Oh… Well, that’s great for him then. I’m sure he’s wonderful at it.”

 

“eh, he could do well with some baking classes, but the girls sure love him,” he chuckled, “he’s got a regular following almost every day, a fanclub of sorts.”

 

Moving the vase to your dining table, you sighed. You suddenly felt like you’d lost a child, even though you had to remember that Sweets wasn’t a kid. Hell, if he was the same as your Sans, then he, in fact, was exponentially older than you.

 

But, another question was nagging in the back of your mind. One that you weren’t sure you wanted to ask, but it still played on your lips, teasing.

 

You cleared your throat. “What about Chief?”

 

Ace visibly froze, the lights in his sockets instantly disappearing. His grin became strained as he struggled to keep his voice steady. “no one’s seen him.”

 

Shoulders falling, you gently ran your thumb over the smooth surface of the vase. A dull sting spread behind your eyes, but you blinked it away. You’d hoped otherwise, that at least someone had seen him or talked to him…

 

Taking note of your steadily declining mood, Ace sighed and slipped from the counter, coming to stand behind you. “doll,” he started, placing a hand on your shoulder and turning you to him, “you ok?”

 

You nodded, ending with a little sniffle. “Yeah, I’m okay… Just worried, you know?”

 

The hand on your shoulder tightened so slightly as Ace struggled to keep a level head. Confident in the fact that you didn’t remember anything from the previous night, he didn’t want to start anything. Instead he offered you a calm smile, “i’m sure he’s fine. hell, maybe he got a job himself. he’ll come ‘round, just you wait.”

 

The tears sprung back to your eyes but you did your best to quell them, returning Ace’s smile. “Right… Thank you, Ace.” Tugging your sleeves down, you dabbed at your eyes. “You know, you can be really nice when you want to be.”

 

Stuffing his hands in his pockets, he shuffled his feet. “aw hell, darlin’, you’re makin’ me sound like a mushy pansy. nah, just can’t stand to see a pretty girl cry ‘s all.”

 

You chuckled, tucking a chunk of hair behind your ear, suddenly semi-conscious about your appearance. Man, you needed a shower.

 

Ace’s face turned serious for a moment, nudging you with his elbow. “anyway, i gotta head to the shop. you gonna be alright here by yourself?”

 

You smiled and nodded, “Of course. I’m sure Sweets will be home sooner or later, and I might just sleep most of the day anyway.”

 

“alright,” he mumbled, unable to slate the worry in his soul. But you were a big girl, you could handle yourself for sure. “i’ll come check on ya after work.”

 

“Make yourself useful and bring me something to eat,” you teased, watching as he headed for your front door, “Maybe some sushi!”

 

“we’ll see, sweetheart,” he called back, sending you a wink as he closed the door behind him.

 

Chuckling you shook your head, turning to fondly rearrange your roses.

 

-*-

 

Ace wasn’t sure how long he stood outside your door, eyelights glaring hard at the door across the hall.

 

He wasn’t lying when he said that no one had seen the edgy skeleton. No one had. And for Chief’s sake, that was a good thing.

 

The tall skeleton’s magic began to boil and prick as he neared Chief’s door, inhaling the air around him.

 

He couldn’t sense the shorter skeleton, the traces of his magic weak. He hadn’t been home in at least twelve hours, maybe more. _‘what a fuckin’ coward.’_

 

A feral growl rolled in Ace’s ribcage, an air of possessiveness surrounding his form. Turning on his heel, he took long strides to his apartment, set on getting a shower before he headed to work. And hoped, from the bottom of his soul, that he would run into the shorter skeleton.

 

-*-

 

Chief groaned, the midday sunlight attacking his sockets with relentless fervor. He stumbled out of the bar labeled ‘Grillby’s’, surprised that he wasn’t actually thrown out as he expected. Then again, this wasn’t his universe, and this Grillby was much more understanding than his own.

 

Old habits die hard, apparently.

 

He didn’t know where he was going, just that he couldn’t return to that damn apartment. Not knowing you were laid up in bed, injured and hurting all because of him.

 

But… Stars, he wanted to see you. To beg for your forgiveness, to spill out how you’d made him feel…

 

His soul did that involuntary leap thing it always did when he’d think of you. A sloppy curse spilled out from between his jaws, his hand twisting at the fabric over his ribs.

 

Your smiling face bounced around in his head, along with your bright eyes and smooth laughter. But after a few moments, your happy features morphed into a face of pure fear, tears cascading over your cheeks. The blissful leaping of his soul turned cold and painful, weighed down by guilt.

 

“fuck,” he spat, forcing your face from his mind. You didn’t deserve to be there, among the demons and horrible things.

 

Stuffing his hands into his pockets, a cold metal brushed against his bones. He came to a stop as he pulled out his phone, the red and black designs standing out against his white phalanges. His screen flicked on and he instantly tapped on his contacts.

 

He could do it. He really could, it would be so easy just to call you.

 

But the thought of hearing your voice on the other end tied his gut all in knots, instantly extinguishing that idea. Shoving the phone back into his pocket, he closed his sockets and sighed.

 

When he opened them, however, he wasn’t standing on a sidewalk in front of an old store.

 

No. He stood in front of your apartment, a mere foot from your door.

 

Chief glanced around, confused. He hadn’t been able to use much of his magic since he’d landed here, much less actually transport anywhere.

 

Then, almost as if he was re-realizing that he was in front of your door, he quickly jumped back, hand reaching for his doorknob. Just as his fingers touched the bronze, he froze.

 

What… What was that smell?

 

A gentle gust of wind tumbled down the breezeway, but it did nothing to rid the surrounding area of the unmistakable iron tang of blood.

 

A blood that he’d unfortunately smelled before.

 

Yours.

 

Almost instinctively he whipped back around, attempting to turn the doorknob only to find it locked. He tried again and again to turn it, hoping it was just jammed.

 

“(name)? are you in there?” His voice was shaky as he called out to you, pressing the side of his skull to the cold surface of your door. There was no movement inside, so he began knocking, hoping you could hear.

 

After a few seconds of silence, and the scent of your blood just growing stronger, he started to panic. His knocking became a feverish banging, but you still didn’t answer.

 

“shit, shit, shit, shit,” he whispered, slamming his sockets shut. Come on, dammit, if he could transport once, he could do it again!

 

Almost instantly he was hit with a wave of the metallic scent. It was enough to almost knock him over. He found himself in your dark living room, and after a moment of silence he heard a loud, almost panicked mewl coming from your hallway.

 

Sneakers squeaking against the wood floors, he dashed down the hall, finding your cat pawing at the bathroom door, his voice scratchy and tired. He must have been there for quite some time.

 

Chief quickly flung your bathroom door open, the sound of the shower running and the scent of your blood mixed with Felix’s meowing and Chief’s pounding soul throwing him for a loop. There was hardly any steam filling the room, and the skeleton began to wonder if you were even alive…

 

Shaking his head and berating himself, he reached for the shower curtain and swung it back, eyelights landing on your form, crumpled onto the shower floor.

 

You were ghostly pale, the only color on your face being the dark circles beneath your eyes. One of your arms were draped over the side of the tub, the rest of your body being pounded relentlessly by the lukewarm water.

 

And the blood.

 

Stars, there was so much blood!

 

It was continually leaking from your wound, pooling around you before descending into the drain. You took in a haggard breath, lifting your head only slightly, but your eyes wouldn’t open.

 

Chief quickly shrugged off his jacket and flipped the water off, snatching a towel from the counter. “hey, hey,” he started, reaching out to touch your face, “(name), can you hear me?”

 

Taking in another struggling breath, you cracked your eyes open as much as you could. “Chief..,” you croaked, voice barely able to be much of a whisper.

 

The skeleton sucked in a breath but it stuck in his ribcage. He fought the urge to flee, instead reaching into the tub to scoop your bare body up. He quickly turned and sat down, leaning against the side of the tub, pulling you almost completely across his lap. Your head lolled backwards before coming to rest against his shoulder.

 

“here,” he sniffled, taking the towel and pressing it to your side. Instantly the white cloth became stained with the red substance leaking from your body, but that isn’t what shocked him.

 

Your hand came to rest against his mandible, the pad of your thumb gently ghosting over his cheekbone. Even though your eyes were hazy and you were barely conscious, you offered him a smile. “Would… You believe… I fell?”

 

“what,” he breathed out, “what are you talkin’ about?”

 

A tired chuckle pushed through your lips, “I fell… In the shower…” You pursed your lips, blinking slowly. “I think… I think I ripped my stitches…”

 

Chief’s voice caught in his nonexistent throat, the frustratingly familiar sting returning to his sockets as he took your form in. Your pale, weak, exhausted form. You shook against him, shivering from the cold of the tile floor and the absence of the warm water.

 

And it was all his fault.

 

“oh, doll,” he whimpered, reaching his hand up to swipe the wet locks of hair from your face. “shit…”

 

Your eyes had started to slip shut again and he began to panic, sternly shaking you. You curled more into him, seeking warmth, though your hand never left his jaw. You inhaled, relishing in the spicy, smoky scent that lingered on his red shirt. It was comforting, warm.

 

Slowly you blinked your eyes open, blearily looking up at him almost as if it were the first time. “Chief..?”

 

He couldn’t bear to look you in the eyes, instead keeping his gaze on the steadily reddening towel he pressed against your hip. Everything began to swim in his vision, and soon red-tinted tears welled up in his sockets.

 

Your hand fell from its place, instead resting against his neck, cold hands brushing warm bone. “Chief,” you tried again, your voice a little firmer this time.

 

He looked up at you, his breathing becoming shallow and fast. He couldn’t, wouldn’t accept this you. The you that was so broken, so beaten down in the very arms that caused it.

 

And yet you looked at him with such fondness. Your eyes held no malice, no hatred, nothing that he was used to. Instead you gazed at him, smiling, your own tears already streaking down your face.

 

“I’m… Sorry.”

 

What? Chief stared at you in disbelief. _You_ were apologizing to _him?_ How could you seek his forgiveness??

 

“I’m sorry,” you huffed out, small, half-sobs starting in your chest, “I’m sorry…”

 

“stop,” Chief croaked, blocking out your apologies, “stop it.”

 

“I made you… Scared…”

 

“stop.”

 

You hiccupped, twisting your hand weakly into his shirt, “I pushed you away…”

 

“enough..!”

 

Lip quivering and hands shaking, you were becoming more hysterical. “I’m sorry!” You managed to pull yourself up, your shaky voice raising in volume. “You were right! You were right about me!”

 

Chief made to speak, but you rushed into your babbling.

 

“I am annoying, and pushy! I didn’t consider your feelings about anything, and tried to push my friendship on you without thinking about what you wanted. I was wrong! I was selfish,” you sobbed, dropping your forehead down to rest against his sternum, “Please… Please forgive me… Please…”

 

The skeleton monster remained silent, attempting to quell the emotions that threatened to spill from his sockets. But damn… Dammit, it wasn’t working. Stars, he was such an idiot! The only person in any universe that wanted to befriend him, truly and honestly, he’d harmed in such a way it made him sick to look at himself.

 

Finally, the tears spilled over, and once they started they just wouldn’t stop.

 

He was tired of feeling this way. Of being alone and scared to let anyone close. Of seeing himself as a true villain and treating those who wanted to be with him with malice and hate.

 

His ribcage expanded and fell with your own, increasing in pace as he made you look up at him and finally looked you in the eye. “i don’t forgive you.”

 

Your shoulders fell, more sobs racking your form as you desperately tried to cling to him. “C-Chief, please…”

 

“i don’t forgive you,” he repeated, shushing you, “because there’s nothing for me to forgive.”

 

Blinking, you stared at him. “What..?”

 

He took in a deep, trembling breath, mimicking your actions of gingerly stroking your cheek. “all my life, i’ve known nothin’ but anger, and hate, and violence. only friends i ever had were the ones i knew i could dust ‘f i needed to. even,” he sucked in a sharp breath, letting it out as he spoke, “even my own bro’s been… less than kind. got the scars to prove it.

 

“because i grew up in that world of death and sufferin’… i gotta assume the worst. can’t let my guard down, you see, cause if i do, ‘m as good as dead.”

 

Your cries had quieted down into sniffles, your face slightly red as you listened, hanging onto every word.

 

Chief chuckled, a sad, lonely and broken sound. “and then i end up here. ‘n here you are. comin’ at me with all these smiles and all this kindness. bein’ sassy ‘n strong, lettin’ me know who’s boss, eh?”

 

A strained smile broke out across your lips, shakily nodding to his question.

 

“there’s no excuse to what i did… i hurt you, the one gal who’s ever even given me the slightest attention. the only human other than frisk who has even wanted to be in the same room as me.” Chief’s brow dipped as he began to tremble, small whimpers a sign that he was about to break. “s-so, this is me asking you… for your forgiveness.”

 

“Chief…”

 

“ _i_ was wrong, i was so fuckin’ wrong,” he gasped out, “i wanna be friends with you, i wanna make you happy. i want us to hang out ‘n watch movies. bake shit, have fun, be normal.” Hands scrabbling around your shoulders, he pulled you to him, tightly embracing you as he hiccupped against your hair. “please, please don’t send me back there,” he whispered, desperation laced in his voice, _“i can’t go back. i was wrong. i need…”_

 

Bringing your arms up, you squeezed your eyes shut and held him close, burying your face into his shoulder. It felt like you’d been gargling nails, making you wince as you cleared your throat, but you spoke loud enough for him to clearly hear you. “I forgive you, Chief.”

 

He gasped through his strained crying, holding you tighter. “’m sorry, sweetheart, fuck, i’m so sorry…”

 

You weren’t sure how long you’d stayed on the floor, but considering your hair was almost dry you were sure it had been a while. Thankfully your wound had long since stopped bleeding, and while Chief wanted to call Gaster, you waved it off. “I just want to lie down, sleep should definitely help.”

 

The shorter skeleton assisted you to your room, and even helped you into some clean pajamas. Of course, you were both aware that he had seen you in your complete birthday suit, his red skull and sweaty forehead evidence that he had realized that, you had decided not to bring it up, instead thanking him for his help.

 

That was a secret you wouldn’t mind keeping between the two of you.

 

You shuffled down into your sheets, pulling your comforter up close to your chin when Chief reentered your room, carrying a glass of water and two of those huge, sparkly pills. Swallowing them with no complaint, you wriggled back down under your blanket.

 

Chief grinned, “heh, comfy?”

 

“Mhmm,” you confirmed, nodding slowly. A yawn broke through your lips as the drowsy effect of the pills began to weigh down on your body.

 

The skeleton neared your bed, gently reaching around you to tuck you in. “a’right, kiddo. get some sleep, kay? i’ll be right across the hall if you need me.”

 

“Um, actually…”

 

Chief stopped, almost halfway to the door, and looked back at you.

 

“Could you… Stay with me?”

 

A splash of red colored the skeleton’s skull, and your face began to warm up enough to match it. “wh-, uh…”

 

Embarrassed by your sudden and strange request, you looked away. “Nevermind. It’s okay, I’m sure I’ll be fine-“

 

Chief sighed, a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth, and neared the bed. Shrugging his jacket off, as well as kicking off his sneakers, he lifted the comforter. “alright, alright, scoot over.”

 

“What? Really?”

 

“yeah, well, can’t have ya tripping again. might as well play nurse for a bit.”

 

Smiling, you shimmied over enough for him to slide in, laying on your uninjured side to face him. He dropped the comforter down over himself, moved around for a few moments, and finally stilled once he was comfortable.

 

But you kept grinning at him.

 

“what?”

 

A slightly delirious giggle left you as you whispered, “It’s like a sleepover!”

 

Chief rolled his eye lights, secretly finding your state somewhat adorable, even though it was fueled by prescription drugs.

 

After a few moments of silence, he felt you reach out and take one of his hands. Looking back up at you, he noted how glossy your eyes had become, but that same smile was spread over your lips. “Thanks, Chief. I really owe you one.”

 

His soul did the jumping again, and he was sure it was going to shoot right through his ribcage. Instinctively his hand curled around yours, a smile of his own placed on his skull.

 

“eh, what are friends for?”


End file.
